JAKARTA, Aug. 14 (Xinhua) — Indonesia’s footwear exports to Europe could surpass 10 billion U.S. dollars within the next three to four years if the Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IEU-CEPA) is implemented, the Indonesian Footwear Association (Aprisindo) said Thursday.
Aprisindo Chairman Eddy Widjanarko said the free trade deal, expected to be concluded in September, would open wider market access and drive export growth by about 20 percent annually.
“Should the IEU-CEPA be signed in September, we can guarantee exports to Europe will rise by 20 percent every year,” Widjanarko was quoted by local media as saying.
Widjanarko said the projected expansion would generate around 300,000 new jobs.
Indonesia’s footwear exports were valued at about 7 billion dollars in 2024. The industry was aiming to increase to 7.5 billion dollars this year.