Jakarta. Indonesia and Timor Leste recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on cooperatives as well as micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

The freshly inked deal encompasses capacity building, a partnership between the two countries' cooperatives and MSMEs, as well as feasibility studies to grow their potential. Both countries also agreed on training cooperation and exchange visits, among others.  

“We wish to grow together with Timor Leste. Because we hold strength in the agriculture and aquaculture sectors,” MSME Minister Teten Masduki was quoted as saying in a press statement on Wednesday.

According to Arsénio Pereira da Silva, Timor Leste’s secretary of state for cooperatives, his country is home to 219 cooperatives whose consolidated revenue amounts to $16 trillion. 

“We wish to improve our cooperatives. We are truly committed to developing cooperatives, which is one of our country’s economic pillars. … We invite the Indonesian MSME Ministry to visit Timor Leste to take a look at our cooperatives in person. Hopefully, this MoU can bolster the development of cooperatives in both countries,” Arsénio Pereira said.

As of 2021, Indonesia has 127,846 cooperatives across the archipelago, the National Statistics Agency (BPS) data shows. Indonesia also has approximately 64.2 million MSMEs, who all represent approximately 61 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).