Day: November 19, 2021

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) confirmed he would coax private firms to partake in the efforts to reduce land damage and restore the environment by establishing nursery centers.

“I will also compel all palm oil and mining companies to prepare such nurseries, so it would support restoration of the environment at mining and palm oil plantation sites,” Jokowi stated at the Rumpin Modern Nursery in Rumpin Sub-district, Bogor District, West Java, on Friday.

Several foreign ambassadors were present at the visit to the nursery center.

“In the next three years, at least 30 (nurseries) like this will be built by the government,” the president added.

By January 2022, Jokowi said the seeds would be ready to be planted at locations prone to flooding and landslides as well as critical land that would need to be rehabilitated.

Jokowi showed some seeds that had been developed at the nursery, including acacia, silk tree (Albizia chinensis), eucalyptus, teak, and mahogany seedlings.

“We want to show that Indonesia is serious in dealing with the impacts of climate change, and we show this nursery center that can produce approximately 12 million seedlings a year,” he remarked.

The ambassadors in attendance comprised British Ambassador Owen Jenkins, US Ambassador Sung Yong Kim, Canadian Ambassador Cameron MacKay, European Union Ambassador Vincent Piket, and World Bank Country Director Satu Kahkonen.

At the nursery, Jokowi and the ambassadors inspected several facilities, such as the germination house area, production house area, and water and sediment pools.

The Rumpin Seed and Nursery Center is built on an area spanning 159.58 hectares that covers a seedling zone, community management zone, training zone, and business development corridor zone, with a production capacity of some 16 million seedlings.

Source: Antara News

The release of Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash, produced by Palari Films, reflects the revival of the nation’s film industry, Tourism and Creative Economy Vice Minister Angela Tanoesoedibjo has said.

“It is expected that many more films produced by Indonesia would emerge so that it would drive economic growth with job creation,” she noted in an official statement issued on Friday.

The Tourism and Creative Economy Ministry has launched the National Economic Recovery (PEN) program to aid the recovery of the national film industry, she informed.

Under the program, the government is providing subsidies for film promotion, film licensing, and film production, she said.

“In addition to reviving film production, the scheme is expected to be able to increase the people’s interest in watching Indonesian films and support the nation’s economy through films,” Tanoesoedibjo affirmed.

Meanwhile, director of Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash, Edwin, expressed his gratitude to various parties who assisted in the production of the film.

The film was made in collaboration with a number of international cinema figures such as cinematographer Akiko Ashizawa from Japan, editor Lee Chatametikool, and sound designer Akritchalerm Kalayanamitr from Thailand, he said.

“There are many collaborations and cooperations with the crew outside of Indonesia. We are making an effort to have that cooperation from the beginning,” he added.

“The goal is to not only make this story enjoyable in Indonesia, but to have it reach as many audiences as possible,” he remarked.

Vengeance Is Mine, All Others Pay Cash, locally known as Seperti Dendam, Rindu Harus Dibayar Tuntas, stars a number of popular actors and actresses from the Indonesian film industry, including Marthino Lio, Ladya Cheryl, Ratu Felisha, Lukman Sardi, Christine Hakim, and Piet Pagau.

The movie is an adaptation of a novel by Eka Kurniawan and tells the story of an impotent thug, known to be one of the toughest fighters in the Javanese underworld, who falls in love with a female bodyguard after a fight.

Source: Antara News

The presence of financial technology (fintech) companies can encourage the acceleration of financial inclusion in Indonesia, chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Indonesian Fintech Association (Aftech), Rudiantara, has said.

“Financial inclusion means ensuring that Indonesian people have access to financial services, whether it is saving, lending, or investment,” he expounded at the opening of an Aftech workshop, ‘Fintech for Faster Economic Recovery’, here on Friday.

According to Bank Indonesia (BI) statistics, the number of e-Money instruments in Indonesia reached 513,968,693 in August 2021, he noted.

During the same period, fintech accumulation in lending reached Rp249 trillion with the number of loan recipients touching 68.41 million, he said citing data from the Financial Services Authority (OJK).

In recent years, the tech industry has continued to grow. This can be seen from the number of startup technology companies that are registered as Aftech members, he said.

The number increased from 24 to 275 by 2019 end and further shot up to 335 at the end of the second quarter of this year, he informed.

In addition to conducive regulations, the rapid growth of the tech industry has been influenced by several factors, such as increasing investment, a high percentage of the population belonging to the working-age group, and a high number of people—both unbanked and underbanked—who had never utilized any banking services, he said.

“Internet penetration has helped bolster the development of technology in Indonesia. We know there are 200 million more Indonesians who have access to the Internet,” Rudiantara said.

However, he argued, the technology industry also faces some challenges such as low financial literacy, basic infrastructure, and limited resources, especially in non-metropolitan areas.

He also emphasized that financial literacy must be improved so that people as fintech users become more literate and do not get trapped in illegal online lending, or popularly known as pinjol.

“Illegal pinjol is so popular that even the President conveyed his concerns about it,” he highlighted.

However, he reminded that people’s perception of financial technology should not only be limited to illegal online lending.

In fact, the technology available in the market is varied, not only in terms of online payments and loans but also in the form of other business models such as aggregators, innovative credit scoring, financial planners, equity crowdfunding, and wealth management services, he expounded.

Aftech, as an association that gives support to tech companies, takes the problem of illegal online loans seriously and does not want to stay silent, he affirmed.

“Aftech has taken various steps and is committed to keep working to tackle pinjol, including collaborative steps with regulators and stakeholders,” he said.

Source: Antara News

Social Affairs Minister Tri Rismaharini urged hundreds of Mount Sinabung eruption refugees in Siosar Relocation Area, Siosar village, Karo district, North Sumatra province, to rise from the economic downturn caused by the disaster.

“Remember, God will not change the fate of his people, unless they are willing to change,” she remarked on Friday.

She also interacted with around 370 refugees who have been living in the relocation area since the disaster struck in 2015.

Most of them were mothers and children who asked for social assistance from the government, for instance, direct cash assistance (BLT), basic food assistance, and the Family Hope Program (PKH).

They also told the minister about their family members who had suffered a stroke or other ailments.

Rismaharini encouraged them to start home-based businesses to increase their welfare and shared her experience in implementing a self-reliance program with the Surabaya community.

When she was Surabaya Mayor, she said her office helped residents take up chicken and vegetable farming and their harvests were absorbed by hotels in the city.

She also recounted how a housewife successfully paid off hundreds of million rupiahs in debt by becoming a baker after learning baking from cookbooks provided by the local public library.

“My goal in coming here is to increase people’s income,” she remarked.

Thus, if any of the Mount Sinabung refugees can do weaving, the Social Affairs Ministry will procure the machines to make ulos—traditional cloth of the Batak people, she said.

“If you have no idea on where to sell the product, I will take care of it,” the minister added.

Furthermore, she handed compensation of Rp15 million each to four heirs of deceased eruption victims, and Rp5 million each to injured victims.

In addition, she disbursed other assistance worth Rp513,081,567 in the form of basic necessities, toddler’s meals, kids’ wares, blankets, beds, mattresses, roll tents, and multipurpose tents.

Source: Antara News

Communication and Informatics Minister (Kominfo) Johnny G. Plate met with Denmark’s Ambassador to Indonesia Lars Bo Larsen today to discuss bilateral cooperation, specifically in the technology sector.

“We discuss several aspects related to Indonesia and Denmark, including how Denmark has the technology and is preparing to forge cooperation on public protection and disaster handling with Indonesia since it is a nation that lies within the ring of fire and often experiences natural disasters,” Plate noted.

“Denmark has the technology to conduct coordinated governance on disaster handling and public protection,” the minister added here on Friday.

The era of digital transformation presents numerous digital technologies, one of which can be utilized to handle disasters whether it is the early warning system and efforts made during and after disasters, he remarked.

“I expect the government of Denmark to promptly send its proposal, so that it could be continued through Indonesia’s procedures and governance, including by the Bappenas (The National Development Planning Board) and the Finance Ministry that handles the finance,” Plate affirmed.

“The project size runs to around half a billion dollars, which is why it needs to be well prepared,” he remarked.

The second area of discussion between the minister and ambassador focused on technology that concerns services at remote regions.

This technology aligns with the policy and development that the Kominfo has conducted to develop informatics infrastructure in Indonesia’s outermost, remote, and underdeveloped (3T) areas, he noted.

Source: Antara News

Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Minister I Gusti Ayu Bintang Darmawati officiated Banjarharjo Village, Kalibawang Sub-district, and Tanjungharjo Village, Nanggulan Sub-district, Kulon Progo District, Yogyakarta, as models for Women-Friendly and Child-Caring Villages.

Darmawati stated in Kulon Progo on Friday that villages should integrate gender- and child-friendly perspectives in every governance and development, and the development in question must be conducted in a calculated and sustainable manner.

“There are 10 indicators to realize a women-friendly and child-caring village (DRPPA), but it is not only the responsibility of the village but synergy and collaboration should also be built along with community and religious leaders as well as volunteers,” the minister remarked.

Among the 10 indicators that should be met to create such village are the organization of women and children in the village and availability of village data containing information on women and children.

In addition, a village regulation on women-friendly and child-caring village should be put into place as well as budget allocation from village finances and utilization of village assets to realize the policy through women’s empowerment and children protection within the village.

Another indicator is the percentage of women’s representation at the village level of the government, consultative body, and community and customary institutions. There should also be a percentage of female entrepreneurs in the village, especially female heads of households, disaster survivors, and survivors of violence.

“Another indicator is that all children in the village receive child rights-based care. There is no violence against women and children and victims of human trafficking (TPPO). There is no child labor and no child marriage,” she added.

Darmawati expected the Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Ministry to collaborate together to find the best solution in each indicator in order to create the ideal DRPPA model.

“This is so that the model can later be replicated across the Yogyakarta region, including in Kulon Progo District,” she elaborated.

Deputy Governor of Yogyakarta Paku Alam X lauded the ministry for selecting Yogyakarta, represented by the districts of Kulon Progo and Sleman, as one of the 33 provinces and 71 districts and cities that became the model for the 2021-2022 women-friendly and child-caring village.

Villages must proffer a sense of security and comfort, especially for women and children, by fulfilling the right to protection from any shape or form of violence and discrimination, as well as providing facilities and infrastructure that are women- and child-friendly.

He elaborated that Yogyakarta, as a special region, harbored a vision of creating great and independent families, with a strong and good culture.

The deputy governor explained that the concept meant that human development did not only focus on the aspects of cognition but also character and behavior, which in turn would create human beings that are fair in thought and deed towards others.

Head of Kulon Progo District Sutedjo noted that efforts to empower women and protect children had been pursued and implemented by his administration. It could be seen from their plan for medium-term development, work plan, and policies in the form of regional regulations. They have taken a gender-responsive approach in addition to being friendly to children’s rights and protection.

“We hope that with the support and guidance of the Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Ministry and all related stakeholders, the women-friendly and child-caring village in Kulon Progo District can succeed, so that later it can be replicated in all villages in the Kulon Progo region,” he added.

Source: Antara News