PORTALJABAR, BANDUNG CITY - Deputy Governor of West Java Erwan Setiawan officially closed the West Java International Industry and Trade Expo (WIITEX) 2026 at the Exhibition Hall of Summarecon Mall Bandung, Sunday (14/6/2026).

In his remarks, Erwan expressed his appreciation to all parties involved in organizing WIITEX 2026, including the West Java Provincial Industry and Trade Office, partners, business actors, and various stakeholders who contributed to the success of the event.

According to Erwan, WIITEX is not just an exhibition event, but a strategic space that brings together the region's superior potential with wider market opportunities.

"WIITEX 2026 carries the theme 'The Golden Belt of Java: Coffee, Tea, and Cocoa for the Future.' This theme is highly relevant to the direction of West Java's economic development, as future trade will not only depend on volume but also on the quality, sustainability, and added value of leading commodities," said Deputy Governor Erwan.

Erwan Setiawan emphasized that coffee, tea, and cocoa are strategic commodities that play a vital role in driving regional economic growth. Therefore, their development needs to be continuously encouraged through innovation, downstreaming, brand strengthening, and expanding market access.

Erwan also expressed his appreciation for the various activities held during WIITEX 2026, including workshops on bean-to-bar cocoa processing, auctions of superior commodities, and talks on sustainable trade.

"This shows that WIITEX 2026 is not only about promotion, but also about education, networking, and a smarter and more competitive future for trade," he said.

Amidst global economic dynamics, Erwan believes West Java must continue to emerge as a resilient, adaptive, and innovative region. He believes that events like WIITEX are a means to strengthen exports, expand markets, and enhance the competitiveness of West Java's superior products at the national and international levels.

In addition, Erwan encouraged the development of cocoa commodities in West Java to reduce dependence on imported raw materials, which are still used by a number of chocolate processing industries.

"West Java has quite extensive land potential for cocoa development. I hope that in the future, we will be able to produce our own raw materials so we won't be overly dependent on imports, especially when the exchange rate fluctuates," he said.

He added that cocoa development can be carried out by utilizing potential land, including land owned by Perhutani and idle land owned by the community that has not been productive.

Meanwhile, the Head of the West Java Provincial Industry and Trade Office, Nining Yuliastiani, reported that during the three days of WIITEX 2026, transactions recorded reached IDR 25.09 billion, equivalent to US$1.4 million.

This value comes from export transactions, business matching, and auctions of superior commodities held during the exhibition.

"The total transactions recorded during the three-day event reached Rp25.09 billion, or approximately US$1.4 million. This was a combination of export activities, business matching, and commodity auctions," said Nining.

According to him, one of the most sought-after commodities in the auction is premium West Java tea, which has high quality and is widely used as a blending ingredient and value-added downstream product.

"West Java's premium tea has received a very positive response. It's not only for domestic demand, but also in demand in export markets from various countries," he said.

Nining explained that international buyer interest in West Java's leading commodities continues to grow. Initially, representatives from 11 countries registered to participate in the business matching program, but that number grew to 14 during the program's implementation.

In addition, around 80 buyers and sellers participated in a hybrid manner, both online and offline.

According to Nining, WIITEX has succeeded in becoming an effective platform for bringing together business actors with buyers, sellers, and exporters from various countries.

"They can find a variety of superior commodities that have gone through a quality and quantity curation process, thus providing confidence to continue business cooperation," he said.

He is optimistic that the implementation of WIITEX will further strengthen the market expansion of West Java's superior products while increasing business awareness of the importance of quality standards, sustainability, and global market preferences that are now increasingly prioritizing health and sustainability aspects.

With the end of WIITEX 2026, the West Java Provincial Government hopes that the business networks established, the trade opportunities created, and the increased capacity of business actors can continue to develop and make a real contribution to the growth of industry, trade, and the economy of West Java.