Day: May 11, 2022

The government continues to encourage the private sector to contribute in shaping the digital talent ecosystem in Indonesia, Chief of the Presidential Staff Moeldoko stated.

“From the target of the development program of 100 thousand digital talents in Indonesia, currently, around 60 thousand digital talents have been created. The government really lauds the cooperation of the private sector that supports the formation of a digital ecosystem in Indonesia,” Moeldoko noted in a statement here, Wednesday.

The statement was delivered by Moeldoko while visiting the Huawei Indonesia Headquarters, Jakarta, Tuesday (May 10).

According to Moeldoko, the government is committed to supporting the national digital talent development. One manifestation of that commitment is to intensify vocational education.

“Hence, the government also continues to encourage other innovations from the private sector, especially in shaping digital talents in Indonesia,” he remarked.

The Presidential Staff Office (KSP) has signed a memorandum of understanding with Huawei Indonesia in October 2020 to develop 100 thousand digital talents in Indonesia.

Moeldoko emphasized the importance of cooperation between the government and the private sector, including Huawei Indonesia. This is because by 2030, Indonesia requires nine million qualified Human Resources (HR) with advanced digital technology expertise, such as Cloud, Artificial Intelligence, Big Data Analytics, and 5G to the Internet of Things.

Meanwhile, Huawei Indonesia CEO Jacky Chen praised the support of the Presidential Office (KSP) to develop a digital ecosystem.

“We really laud the guidance and advice by Moeldoko to us to support digital transformation in Indonesia. Going forward, Huawei wants to contribute more to Indonesia as part of Huawei’s commitment ‘I Do’ to create value in order to build Indonesia, which is 5G-oriented, digital, and green,” he affirmed.

Huawei, through the ASEAN Academy Indonesia, has actively held various trainings, seminars, comparative studies, certifications, and competitions designed to enrich insight, deepen understanding, and increase mastery of leading technologies.

Indonesia will bolster digital technology utilization in 2023 to strengthen the domestic trade ecosystem, Economic Deputy at the Ministry of National Development Planning (PPN) and National Development Planning Board (Bappenas) Amalia Adininggar Widyasanti earlier stated.

“Digital technology utilization is (meant) to improve economic productivity, especially to strengthen national logistics and digital technology utilization, bolster business competition, and improve consumer protection,” she noted.

During the 2022 CSIS Global Dialogue, held online on Thursday, she remarked that digital technology utilization is also expected to boost Indonesia’s economic productivity that has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Rapid developments in digital technology during the pandemic has been deemed to proffer several benefits, though it also led to several types of jobs disappearing.

The nation must utilize digital technology and adopt a digital logistics system to ensure smoother flow of goods, Widyasanti emphasized.

International trade policies will be more open and will be directed toward increasing the export of goods and services with high added value in order to bolster economic productivity.

With this openness, cooperation between nations in implementing digital technology for trade is expected to materialize and facilitate the flow of basic necessities.

Source: Antara News

The Bank Indonesia (BI) Consumer Survey in April 2022 indicated that consumer confidence in economic conditions increased, as reflected in the Consumer Confidence Index (IKK) of 113.1, an increase from 111 in the previous month.

Chief Executive Director of the BI Communications Department Erwin Haryono, in an official statement here on Wednesday, stated that the increase in IKK was observed in majority of the expenditure categories, age groups, and respondents’ education categories.

Spatially, the increase in IKK occurred in most of the cities covered by the survey, with the largest being in Bandar Lampung, followed by Samarinda and Denpasar.

He explained that increasing consumer confidence in April 2022 was driven by improving consumer perceptions of the current economic conditions.

This increase is related to perceptions of current income, availability of employment, and increased purchases of durable goods.

Meanwhile, consumer expectations for future economic conditions remained at the optimistic level (index >100) at 127.2, although not as high as the previous month at 128.1, supported chiefly by income expectations.

The BI consumer survey in April 2022 also indicated that the average proportion of consumer income for consumption decreased slightly, while the average proportion of installments/debt payments tended to be stable.

This is indicated by average propensity to consume ratio that fell, from 74.4 percent to 73.9 percent, while the average debt-to-income ratio remained at 9.7 percent.

Haryono remarked that the portion of savings to income in April 2022 was recorded at 16.4 percent, higher than 15.9 percent in the previous month.

Based on expenditure groups, the average share of consumption to income was observed to decline in several expenditure categories.

On the other hand, the portion of savings to income increased in some expenditure categories, the highest for respondents, with an expenditure level of more than Rp5 million per month.

Source: Antara News

The State Budget (APBN) will continue to be utilized as a shock absorber to maintain the people’s purchasing power, Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani Indrawati stated during Kompas TV’s Business Talk show on Tuesday.

This means that the shock arising due to the international conditions is managed by the State Budget, she explained.

“However, as a tradeoff for maintaining the people’s purchasing power, the State Budget’s burden will significantly rise from the fuel oil subsidy,” she remarked.

The war in Ukraine has increased the prices of commodities, including of food and energy.

The government will continually strive to ensure that the people are not affected by the international energy commodity price surge by maintaining stability in the prices of electricity and fuel oil consumed by the people.

This is because the surge in energy prices can stem household consumption that had grown 4.34 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of 2022. This figure does not yet meet the government’s expectations.

“Hence, in order to have consumption grow above five percent year-on-year, we must maintain the people’s purchasing power,” the minister remarked.

Beyond maintaining the people’s purchasing power, the government will continue to encourage higher investment to ensure the continuity of economic recovery, which can be achieved with funding from enterprises and banking credit.

Indrawati expects that banking credit distribution can grow even higher than the achievement in the first quarter of 2022, which was 6.67 percent year-on-year.

This can occur since the people’s activity was currently recovering from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The business world became more optimistic and brave after seeing the people conduct mobility and consumption well, with maintained purchasing power,” she remarked.

Source: Antara News

The Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) supports the government’s decision to implement the work from home (WFH) regulation after the Eid holiday.

However, not all business sectors must implement the regulation since it should be adapted to their respective business sectors.

Kadin Chairman Arsjad Rasjid agreed that the WFH regulation can be applied as an effort to avoid an increase in the homecoming traffic. WFH is able to reduce community activities on the streets, thereby reducing congestion.

“However, all of that goes back to the regulations of each company because not all business sectors are the same. There are several companies that have to conduct their operational activities directly at the workplace, such as manufacturing, production, and consumer goods companies,” he noted in a written statement received here, Wednesday.

Hence, such companies cannot implement the WFH regulation for their employees. However, certain types of companies in the service industry or other sectors, such as management and back-office, can implement the WFH regulation, he remarked.

“Indonesian workers are certainly familiar with the WFH term since the emergence of COVID-19. In addition, many companies are still implementing the WFH-WFO shifting system for their employees in order to continue to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Indonesia,” Rasjid remarked.

Meanwhile, Kadin Deputy Chairman Adi Mahfudz Wuhadji noted that companies in goods or production sector cannot implement the WFH regulation.

“However, this must also be adjusted to the internal policies of each company. Every company has a ministerial employee performance target that must be adhered to together. If the WFH regulation is only appealed to reduce congestion, then I think all employees could communicate with their company to avoid miscommunication,” Wuhadji noted.

He later remarked that Kadin and other associations faced no problem with the WFH regulation as long as it did not interfere with work efficiency and productivity.

“We still have to respond wisely to the WFH regulation. This means it is adjusted to each business sector, and it cannot be generalized,” he concluded.

Source: Antara News

Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Sakti Wahyu Trenggono, visited Batre Dock, Tambakreja, Cilacap district, Central Java, on Wednesday to inspect boats that were damaged in a fire.

After visiting the dock, the minister also had a dialogue with the representatives of the owners of the boats, which caught on fire on the afternoon of May 3, 2022.

“There were 54 boats that were burned, among them, were below 30 GT (gross tonnage) and above 30 GT. I met with two of the boat owners. This is the attention that we must do, especially on its standard operating procedure,” Trenggono told reporters.

Regarding that issue, he asked all dock heads not to repair ships or boats on the dock as boats undergoing repairs must be emptied of fuel and separated from others.

“Discipline is also important. Now that this has already happened—how to handle 554 boat crews who lost their jobs (and help them) to return to work again?” he added.

Trenggono said that based on the information he received, the time required to build one boat unit is around six months.

The government, through the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, will provide assistance with the help of the Marine and Fisheries Business Capital Management Agency (LPMUKP).

“We will try to help through the agency, but there must be a detailed calculation from the boat owners, so we can give them a soft loan,” Trenggono said.

Furthermore, they will be monitored by the Directorate General of Wild Fisheries. “And hopefully, in six months, they can sail and work again,” the minister said.

In addition to distributing essential commodities packages for the fishers, his ministry also froze their boat licenses so that they are not taxed until the boats are repaired.

The fire occurred on Batre Dock at 5:10 p.m. local time on May 3, which started with an explosion.

Source: Antara News

Awareness of the negative impacts of climate change should be maintained to achieve the target of the Paris Agreement and not affect the gross domestic product (GDP), Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto stated.

“Awareness of the negative impacts of climate change must be maintained. We are committed to reducing (emissions by) 29 percent independently by 2030 and by 41 percent with international assistance,” Hartarto said at the 2022 Green Economy Indonesia Summit: “The Future Economy of Indonesia” on Wednesday.

The minister later explained that if the net-zero emission target is achieved, then the world’s GDP will decrease by 10 percent, thereby resulting in Southeast Asia being one of the regions with high risk.

The climate economic index also shows that Indonesia is a vulnerable country, especially during the dry season. The government, especially through the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, has made preparations to deal with forest fires.

Efforts to realize a green economy are also encouraged through the G20 panel by discussing sustainable financing to finance sources based on multilateral development. Indonesia and Asian Development Bank are discussing a scenario to develop profitable low-carbon energy.

“This includes pilot projects related to emission reduction activities targeted at 2060. It is hoped that the prototyping of the steam power plant (PLTU) would be financed. The scenario is being discussed with the Asian Development Bank,” Hartarto remarked.

He later noted that Indonesia’s renewable energy potential is quite high, amounting to 442 gigawatts for power generation. However, renewable energy still faced challenges in technology, such as hydro-power, which can only be built in North Kalimantan and Memberamo Papua. However, the highest demand comes from Java.

Furthermore, the government continues to encourage the energy transition mechanism in the form of taxation in a cap and trade and cap and tax.

In the transportation sector, the government is also committed to encouraging the mandatory biodiesel program and energy reduction equivalent to 23.3 million tons of CO2 equivalent that is expected to encourage the electric car-based industry sector.

Moreover, the government is striving to reduce the cost of carbon capture and storage through the same technology as ammonia injection in the form of a combination of coal and ammonia. The cost only comes up to US$25 per ton, from the previous US$100 per ton.

The president has also passed a regulation on the economic value of carbon that aims to encourage the creation of carbon-neutral-based industries.

“The green industry is the main goal of the energy transition period, and this will ultimately provide added value to the economy itself. Besides that, it can also absorb highly skilled workers,” Hartarto concluded.

Source: Antara News

Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani Indrawati strongly believes that women’s access to financial products and services should be improved, so that they would have a positive impact on economic development.

“Increasing women’s access to formal financial services will not only secure their families’ lives but will also empower them with the involvement in MSMEs (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises),” the finance minister stated during the webinar “Digital Transformation for Financial Inclusion” monitored in Jakarta, Wednesday.

According to a study by the McKinsey Global Institute, some US$13 trillion, or 11 percent of the world’s gross domestic product (GDP), could be recorded if all countries in the world increased gender equality for women.

“If we can realize the potential of women in the economy and labor market, we might be able to generate economic activity worth US$28 trillion, or 26 percent of the world’s GDP by 2025,” Indrawati emphasized.

However, currently, women still face difficulties in accessing financing due to the absence of identity cards or the lack of permission for them to manage assets on their own.

“This creates a huge barrier for women to access funding and capital from financial institutions because they have no guarantees,” she pointed out.

Women can also be encouraged to access funding by utilizing digital platforms, but for this reason, their digital literacy levels and skills should be improved.

“Without literacy and education, it will be difficult for women to open accounts to access financial products,” she stressed.

Indrawati cited as an example that women in Indonesia currently had accounts to access formal financial products, among others, to get assistance from the government, but this account was not used widely.

Improving financial literacy is also important for women entrepreneurs, so that they can develop their businesses.

“Women entrepreneurs, with a good level of financial literacy, can manage their business and household finances better and benefit from financial products to develop their businesses and secure future finances according to their needs,” she stated.

Gender Equality Deputy at the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Lenny N. Rosalin earlier urged formal finance institutions in Indonesia to become more gender inclusive.

In a press statement issued on Monday, Rosalin expressed belief that this will help expand women’s access to financing.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted women more than men, specifically women in industries, such as restaurant and hotel, as well as domestic workers, in addition to informal sectors, such as MSMEs (Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises),” she noted.

According to Rosalin, women workers have been affected more by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has led to a rise in gender inequality due to a reduction in women’s workforce participation.

Access to financial services for females, specifically entrepreneurial women, would allow the general public to get out of the poverty pit, the deputy explained.

In addition, financial inclusion contributes to a nation’s financial stability as a whole.

Source: Antara News

Macroeconomic and financial researcher at the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef) Riza Annisa Pujarama stated that Indonesia is highly likely to achieve this year’s economic growth target of 5.2 percent.

“The 2022 target is set at 5.2 percent, while the first-quarter achievement is 5.01 percent. Hence, the likelihood of achieving the target is quite high. When compared to the 2015-2021 period, we have never reached the target,” she stated during an online discussion in Jakarta, Wednesday.

Pujarama remarked that economic growth in the first quarter of 2022 was clocked at 5.01 percent, and almost all business sectors had experienced growth and recovery.

Business fields experiencing growth, include mining and quarrying, processing industry, electricity and gas industry, construction, transportation and warehousing, as well as financial services and real estate.

Only four business sectors experienced a decline in growth as compared to the first quarter of 2021: information and communication, education services, as well as agriculture, forestry and fisheries as well as water supply, waste management, waste and recycling.

However, Annisa emphasized that the government should accelerate and overcome economic challenges, such as inflation, in the next quarter.

The researcher explained that global inflation could affect Indonesia through trade, as several of the raw materials for the domestic processing industry were still imported.

“Hence, it will affect our industry,” she remarked.

Moreover, the challenge from the domestic side, in the form of prices regulated by the government or rising administered prices, such as fuel oil (BBM), specifically Pertamax, will also affect economic growth.

The increase in energy prices will mainly affect the costs for the processing industry, such as an increase in the production costs and distribution costs.

Moreover, the government’s plan to increase the basic electricity tariff (TDL) will erode the people’s purchasing power, so it will affect economic growth in future.

“The government should regulate properly regarding the increase in fuel and electricity prices,” she emphasized.

Source: Antara News