JAKARTA - President of the Republic of Indonesia Prabowo Subianto received a visit from Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese at the Merdeka Palace, Jakarta, Friday, February 6. The meeting was an opportunity to strengthen bilateral relations between the two countries, especially in the education and economic sectors.
Indonesia-Australia cooperation in recent years has shown an increasing trend, marked by high student mobility, collaboration between campuses, and an increase in trade values.
Quoted from the Data Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Australian Government, Friday, February 6, about 24,000 Indonesian students are recorded to study in Australia in 2025. Overall, more than 200,000 Indonesians have studied in the country.
Indonesia is also one of the largest contributors of international students to Australia. Every year, the Australian government provides around 220 scholarships and short-term programs through the Australia Awards Indonesia scheme.
A number of Australian universities have also started opening campuses and programs in Indonesia, including Monash University in Jakarta, Western Sydney University in Surabaya, and Deakin University in Bandung. The presence of these campuses is considered to strengthen the development of human resources.
Educational cooperation also includes the Australia-Indonesia BRIDGE School Partnerships program which brings together schools from both countries, as well as the INOVASI (Innovation for Indonesian School Children) program to improve the literacy and numeracy of elementary school students. The INOVASI program is now entering its third phase for the 2024-2027 period with funding of 55 million Australian dollars.
At the university level, the two countries run joint campus and joint program schemes, as well as various scholarship and youth exchange programs, such as the Australia Awards Scholarship, LPDP-Australia Awards, and the Australia-Indonesia Youth Exchange Program.
Apart from education, the economic relationship between the two countries is also strengthening. The implementation of the Indonesia-Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IA-CEPA) since July 2020 has encouraged increased trade and investment.
Two-way trade values jumped from 12.91 billion Australian dollars in 2020 to 35.38 billion Australian dollars by the end of 2024. Throughout 2024, Australia was recorded as Indonesia's ninth largest trading partner with a trade value of 16.13 billion Australian dollars. Indonesia also recorded a trade surplus of 3.13 billion Australian dollars against Australia.
In the last five years, Indonesian exports to Australia grew by around 14.46 percent, while Australian exports to Indonesia increased by 17.42 percent.
In terms of investment, the realization of Australian investment in Indonesia in 2024 reached 1.36 billion US dollars, while Indonesian investment in Australia was 1.42 billion US dollars.
Community mobility also strengthens economic relations. In the period 2024-2025, around 1.75 million Australians were recorded to visit Indonesia, making the tourism sector one of the main pillars of cooperation between the two countries.
The meeting between Prabowo and Albanese is expected to further strengthen the strategic partnership between Indonesia and Australia in various fields.
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