Jakarta. The business deals that President Prabowo Subianto had secured from his first-ever foreign trip had totaled $21.36 billion, much bigger than the previously announced figures, a spokesman said on Thursday.

Prabowo had spent most of November abroad to meet fellow world leaders and business executives. His stops included China and the US -- two rivaling economies that are also among Indonesia’s major foreign investors. He also flew to Peru for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) talks, as well as the G20 Brazil Summit. The former army general then traveled to the UK before making a final stop at the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

During his time in London, Prabowo told reporters that he would not go home empty-handed, but with business deals worth $18.5 billion -- a number that he admitted to have exceeded his expectations.

Foreign Affairs Ministry’s spokesman Roy Soemirat revealed that the deals from Prabowo’s maiden overseas trip had actually hit the $20-billion mark.

“This was Prabowo’s first time abroad since his inauguration. There were at least 24 government-to-government deals that Indonesia sealed during Prabowo’s visit. We also got 27 private sector commitments worth $21.36 billion, spanning sectors such as energy transition, food security, and downstream industrialization initiatives,” Roy said at a press briefing in Jakarta.

Roy did not go on the specifics of the $21.36 billion business commitments. However, $10 billion of those deals came from cooperation with Chinese companies in sectors ranging from renewable energy to mining. British investors had pledged to invest $8.5 billion. This includes UK oil and gas giant BP’s $7 billion investment in a gas recovery project in West Papua.

Former President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo passed the baton to Prabowo on Oct. 20. When it comes to foreign matters, Jokowi is known to have a strong emphasis on economic diplomacy, particularly in his final years. Wooing foreign investors was big on Jokowi’s foreign agenda, particularly businessmen who would be keen to fund his capital relocation megaproject and Indonesia’s electric vehicle (EV) ecosystem.

Prabowo appears to have shown interest in keeping Jokowi's economic diplomacy momentum going. According to Roy, the Foreign Affairs Ministry is even mulling establishing a new directorate-general dedicated to strengthening Indonesia’s trade and investment relations. The government, however, is still working on the technicalities for this yet-to-be-built directorate-general.

The Prabowo government aims to attract Rp 1,905 trillion (approximately $120 billion) from domestic and foreign investors throughout 2025.

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