Day: November 12, 2021

A researcher cautioned the government to be cognizant of a likely food price hike in 2022, as uncertainty looms large over the planting and harvest seasons owing to the COVID-19 pandemic and La Nina phenomenon.

“Climate crisis posed a challenge for the agriculture industry to satisfy the global needs for food. The uncertainty of the planting and harvest seasons also posed a challenge for Indonesian farmers to process their crops and fulfill daily needs,” a researcher for the Center for Indonesian Policy Studies (CIPS) Indra Setiawan noted in his written statement in Jakarta on Friday.

Despite the supply and availability of basic food commodities being stabilised, other imported commodities, such as garlic, sugar, beef, and soybeans, might experience price fluctuations, Setiawan noted.

Citing the strategic food commodity information centre (PIHPS), the researcher pointed out that the price of garlic and beef, both at Rp28,300 (around US$1.98) per kg and Rp113,250 (around US$7.9) per kg in January 2021, have hiked to Rp30,600 (around US$2.1) per kg and Rp120,050 (around US$8.4) per kg by mid-2021.

“The national commodity production and price fluctuations are a reliable indicator to devise a commodity control policy with sufficient accuracy. Moreover, we also need reliable food commodity data that would be frequently updated,” he noted.

Difficulties in securing beef imports may cause price hikes in early 2022, especially during the Ramadan fasting month and Eid al-Fitr festivity when the demand for beef would surge significantly, Setiawan stated.

Ensuring sufficient stocks, primarily of imported commodities, is essential for maintaining food price stability, the researcher remarked.

“Chain of events causal to food commodity price hikes, particularly of imported commodities, must be carefully studied, as it could be used as a parameter in determining the right policy,” Setiawan stated.

Accurate and accountable food production data is also essential for determining a commodity control policy and arranging import procedures to ensure the smoothness of the import process while protecting the farmers’ output for market absorption, the researcher stated.

“We need to facilitate the process to import food commodities, as we need to ensure domestic food resilience by fulfilling the food demand at an affordable price,” Setiawan remarked.

Source: Antara News

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has expressed the hope that the Mandalika Circuit, which was inaugurated on Friday, will revive economic growth in West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) Province.

“This is a big event that will be annually held at the Mandalika Circuit, and it will certainly have an impact on economic growth in NTB province,” the President remarked at the Mandalika Circuit inauguration, according to a statement released by the press bureau of the Presidential Secretariat here on Friday.

The circuit for the World Superbike event is located in the Mandalika Special Economic Zone (KEK), Central Lombok, NTB.

Widodo said he believes that international sports events such as this year’s World Superbike and MotoGP in March 2022 will fuel hopes of growth in the region’s economy.

“We will try (to implement) this World Superbike first, then MotoGP. After that, we will evaluate and see which direction we should continue,” he added.

The Mandalika Circuit is managed by the Indonesia Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC). ITDC is a part of InJourney, a state-owned holding that focuses on the tourism sector.

The President also inaugurated a bypass road connecting Lombok International Airport with the circuit on Friday.

The bypass road stretches about 17.3 km and cuts travel time from the airport to Mandalika Circuit to just 15 minutes.

“Alhamdulillah, we should be grateful that the 17.3-kilometer bypass road construction between the Lombok International Airport and Mandalika is completed and ready for use,” Widodo announced.

Moreover, he rode his motorbike on the circuit before inaugurating the Mandalika Circuit.

The President had to be careful during the ride as early rains had made the circuit, which has sharp turns, wet.

Chairman of the Indonesian House of Representatives Bambang Soesatyo, Minister of State Secretary Pratikno, Trade Minister Muhammad Lutfi, Minister of Public Works and Public Housing Basuki Hadimuljono, and SOEs Minister Erick Thohir accompanied the President to the Mandalika Circuit.

Minister of Investment/head of Capital Investment Coordinating Board, Bahlil Lahadalia, Governor of NTB, Zulkieflimansyah, and president director of ITDC, Abdulbar Mansoer, were also present at the inauguration.

Source: Antara News

The number of merchants adopting the Quick Response Code Indonesian Standard (QRIS) reached 363,555 as of November 5, 2021, exceeding the target of 363,100 for this year, the Bank Indonesia (BI) Representative Office in Bali province reported.

“Astungkara (Thank God), Bali has achieved and even exceeded the target set,” head of BI’s Bali representative office, Trisno Nugroho, said here on Friday.

QRIS merchants in Bali are dominated by micro-businesses (45 percent), followed by small businesses (30 percent), medium businesses (11 percent), big businesses (4.6 percent), and others (0.3 percent), he informed.

Of the nine districts/towns in the province, three regions with the most QRIS merchants are Denpasar City with 159,456 users (44 percent), Badung District with 99,107 users (28 percent), and Gianyar District with 36,644 users (10 percent), he said.

Meanwhile, Buleleng District has 22,655 users (6 percent), Tabanan District with 18,036 users (5 percent), Karangasem District with 8,424 units (2 percent), Jembrana District with 7,307 users (2 percent), Klunkung District with 6,939 units (2 percent), and Bangil District has the least users at 4,987 (1 percent), he added.

The volume and value of QRIS transactions in Bali have continued to increase with the monthly average reaching 407 transactions worth Rp32.4 billion, reflecting a twofold growth as compared to the average in 2020, Nugroho said.

The increase in QRIS merchant users is inseparable from the education and information dissemination conducted by BI along with the Payment System Service Provider (PJSP), including through social media, he added.

Although the QRIS target has been achieved, he said that he will continue to boost digitalization in all economic sectors, including the education sector.

“We will strongly push this QRIS to again exceed the target by December. I hope it will nearly touch as many as 400 thousand merchants,” the former BI Jakarta representative office head noted.

He said he is optimistic that digitalization in all economic sectors in Bali can be expedited since the millennial customer count has reached over 50 percent.

Nugroho said that he has spoken with the head of VIII Region Higher Education Service Institution (LLDikti), I Nengah Dasi Astawa, to boost the digitalization of the payment system in all higher education institutions and academies in Bali province.

“We, with a number of stakeholders comprising regional administrations, business associations, higher education institutions, community and so on, will strive to realize Bali as a Digital Island, so various digital transactions can use QRIS,” he remarked.

Source: Antara News

Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto has encouraged foreign corporations to invest in Indonesia’s special economic zones (SEZs) at a recent business forum held at the Indonesia Pavilion in the 2020 Dubai Expo.

“I await your presence in Indonesia, and I encourage you to invest in Indonesia’s special economic zones,” he noted as per the official statement received in Jakarta on Friday.

Convenient facilities are offered to corporations investing in Indonesia’s SEZs, the minister remarked. Those facilities are fiscal incentives, such as tax allowance and tax holiday, and one-stop service platform to facilitate business, immigration, labour, and land utilisation permit applications, he remarked.

Indonesia has designated 19 SEZs distributed nationwide and specialising in one specific industry, such as manufacturing, tourism, and creative economy, Hartarto noted.

“The government has also designated SEZs as national strategic projects, so the economic zones will be prioritised for further development,” the minister stated.

SEZs assigned for manufacturing industries have been established at Sei Mangkei, Arun Lhokseumawe, Galang Batang, Tanjung Api-Api in Sumatra; Gresik and Kendal in Java; Trans-Kalimantan Maloy Batuta in Kalimantan; Bitung and Palu in Sulawesi; and Sorong in Papua, according to Hartarto.

Meanwhile, SEZs designated for the tourism industry have been established in Tanjung Kelayang in Bangka Belitung; Tanjung Lesung and Lido in Java; Morotai in North Maluku; Likupang in Sulawesi; and Mandalika in West Nusa Tenggara, he stated.

“International events, such as the World Superbike (WSBK) and MotoGP competitions, would be hosted at the Mandalika SEZ,” he stated.

The Job Creation Law also allows the establishment of SEZs for the tertiary industry, such as SEZs in Nongsa in Batam and Singhasari in East Java that have been designated as digital industry and data centres, while Batam Aero Technic is operating on aeroplane maintenance, repair, and overhaul industry, he noted.

“Through the establishment of SEZs, the government is committed to establishing a proper investment climate by ensuring certainty, clarity, and simplicity factors for investors and industry actors in Indonesia,” Hartarto stated.

Source: Antara News

The Indonesian Government is continuing to encourage the utilization of induction stoves to boost the use of clean energy among the community through the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG)-to-electric stove conversion program.

Induction stoves can help state-owned electricity provider PT PLN customers save on expenses through the subsidized household program, secretary at the Directorate General of Electricity of the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry, Munir Ahmad, said.

“Switching to an induction cooker can reduce the burden of cooking costs by up to 57 percent for household customers who are subsidized by PLN,” he informed in a statement received here on Friday.

Furthermore, the conversion will also benefit the government as it will allow it to save foreign exchange, increase economic growth, and absorb domestic workers, he added.

In addition, Ahmad said that the conversion program aims to achieve energy independence in the midst of high imports of LPG, which reached Rp50.6 trillion per year.

Meanwhile, for PLN, the program can optimize the utilization of its reserve margin of 3.2 gigawatts of power, with potential revenue of Rp1.8 trillion per year, he added.

Ahmad said that PLN had conducted a study regarding the potential customers of the conversion program in locations without any gas and dimethyl ether network.

“Based on the study, the use of induction stoves can reach 19 million customers by 2030,” he informed.

Thus, it will increase domestic spending and contribute to the national economic growth by 0.5 percent, he said.

The government has estimated that the conversion program will require a total budget of Rp2.85 trillion to reach the target of two million users by 2022, he added.

“The budget for the disbursal of free induction stoves and their supporting utensils is Rp2.4 trillion, while the subsidy for the electricity use can reach Rp456 billion,” the directorate general secretary said.

Source: Antara News

The Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection said it fully supports the Minister of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology’s Regulation (Permendikbudristek) Number 30 of 2021 on Prevention and Handling of Sexual Violence in Higher Education.

“In responding to this emergency situation of sexual violence, I, Bintang Puspayoga, and all ranks of the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection fully support the issuance of the ministerial regulation concerning the Prevention and Handling of Sexual Violence in Higher Education,” Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Minister Bintang Puspayoga remarked during an online dialogue originating here on Friday.

The minister affirmed that sexual violence often occurs in the university environment and greatly affects the victims, both mentally and physically.

She said the ministerial regulation can help bolster her ministry’s efforts to protect women and children in the country, saying it is the right regulation to prevent, handle, and reduce the risk of recurring sexual violence on campus.

“We hope that all academic communities in Indonesia can feel the spirit of this PPKS Ministerial Regulation and enthusiastically participate in fostering a safe academic community life that prioritizes humanity and is based on equality and justice,” she remarked.

Minister Puspayoga pointed to several inequalities that still exist and described women and children as a vulnerable group. Sexual violence is one of the issues that threaten their quality of life, she added.

She said she hoped there would be collaboration from all levels of society in implementing the regulation to make higher education institutions places that support independence, build civilization, and encourage progress to achieve Advanced Indonesia.

Source: Antara News

Manpower Minister Ida Fauziyah has said she is optimistic that the establishment of a vocational training center (BLK UPTP) in Morowali District, Central Sulawesi Province, will improve the competence of local workers.

“I truly support the BLK UPTP development plan since it is able to accelerate the improvement of the competence of workers and job seekers,” she said in a written statement received here on Friday.

In addition to responding to global competition and the development of the business sector, the establishment of the training center will also answer the employment challenges in Morowali, North Morowali, and North Konawe Districts.

As industrial areas, the three districts face difficulties in preparing local workers, the minister noted.

“The head of Morowali District said that he had done a mapping of the demand for the workforce and required competence,” the minister informed after having a discussion with the district head.

The vocational training center will be built in the district because it is located between North Konawe District in Southeast Sulawesi Province and North Morowali District in Central Sulawesi Province, thus making its location strategic, she said.

Regarding the workforce, they could be absorbed by the nickel industry and other industries operating in the area, she added.

Meanwhile,Morowali district head, Taslim, welcomed the support of the minister for building the UPTP BLK in the region, saying many investors had entered the industrial area and they required trained local workers.

“One of the challenges we face is to prepare a skilled workforce. Hence, we hope that the training center can be established and operated in Morowali District,” he said.

To build the BLK UPTP, the district authority has provided 15 hectares of land and reserved an additional 4 hectares in the Bumi Fonuasingko Integrated city area, Central Bungku Sub-district, Morowali District, he informed.

“The integrated city has a total area of 380 hectares and we have prepared 19 hectares for the training center,” he added.

Source: Antara News