The Ministry of Trade (Kemendag) is encouraging the strengthening of trade cooperation between Indonesia and Uganda amid geopolitical tensions. This was conveyed by Deputy Minister of Trade (Wamendag) Dyah Roro Esti Widya Putri at an event titled "Pearl of Africa Business Forum – Indonesia Chapter Exploring Strategic Investment Opportunities in Uganda's Key Sectors" at the Park Hyatt, Jakarta, Thursday (July 10, 2025).. In general, Roro stated that total trade between Indonesia and Uganda showed an increasing trend of 47.25% from 2020 to 2024, from USD 8.93 million in 2020 to USD 55.35 million in 2024.
Most recently, total trade between Indonesia and Uganda reached USD 52.82 million in January-April 2025. However, Roro acknowledged that the Indonesia-Uganda trade balance was still dominated by imports from Uganda throughout the first four months of 2025. Specifically, in January-April 2025, the value of Indonesian exports to Uganda only reached USD 8.4 million. Meanwhile, the value of imports from Uganda to Indonesia was USD44.39 million. "Based on these figures, I believe there are still many opportunities that we can develop and further explore to encourage increased trade cooperation between Indonesia and Uganda in the future," she said. From January to April 2025, Indonesia's exports to Uganda were dominated by steel and stainless steel worth USD 5.8 million, accounting for a 68.87% share. Other commodities exported to Uganda included vegetable oil, valued at USD 1.88 million, or around 22.42%. Furthermore, Roro revealed that Indonesia exported USD 274,000 worth of glass to Uganda, accounting for a 3.26% share. Meanwhile, during the same period, Indonesia imported cocoa beans worth USD 44.02 million and tanned sheepskin worth USD 349,000. "Our main commodities include steel, including stainless steel, vegetable oil, and glass," she concluded.
