Day: December 21, 2022

Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto has asked that environmental funds be prioritized for the forestry, energy, mineral resources, carbon trading, environmental service, agriculture, marine fisheries, transportation, and waste management sectors.

He made the statement while opening the “National Meeting of the Environmental Fund Management Agency (BPDLH)” here on Wednesday, which was attended by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi), several ministers, as well as 25 governors and acting governors.

BPDLH could bridge the realization of the 2015 Paris Agreement targets and the 2022 G20 Summit results, especially Indonesia’s latest commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, he said.

In its Enhanced Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) document submitted to the UNFCCC Secretariat on September 23, 2022, Indonesia has increased its emission reduction target to 31.89 percent through its own efforts and 43.20 percent with international assistance.

“In 2018, the government established the BPDLH, which functions as a financing tool for environmental protection and management attempts,” the coordinating minister stated.

The environmental funds managed by the BPDLH originating outside the state budget (APBN) scheme have reached US$968.6 million (equivalent to about Rp14.52 trillion), he noted.

The funds have been obtained from the government’s Reforestation Funds — collected in the form of retribution from forestry timber producers — as well as international assistance provided by the Global Environment Facility, the World Bank, and the Ford Foundation, among others, he informed.

“The funds can be utilized by various parties, including ministries/agencies (K/L) and local governments,” Hartarto said.

Furthermore, the BPDLH national meeting will disseminate information on the global and national environmental protection and management commitments, including climate change mitigation, and discuss the role of local governments in achieving the commitments, he informed.

The meeting will also discuss the coordination mechanisms and working relations between the central government and regional governments in managing environmental funds.

In addition, the meeting will identify cooperation potential between the central and regional governments for mobilizing global and national funding sources through the BPDLH.

The meeting is being held in Jakarta on December 21–22, 2022.

 

Source: Antara News

Solid collaboration between ministries and agencies is needed for the development of the five super-priority tourist destinations (DSPs) and eight tourism special economic zones (SEZs), Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Uno has said.

The synergy is being carried out through the development of 3As (attractions, accessibility, amenities), human resources, industry and investment, as well as promotion development, product development, creative economy product development, and events.

“This is a colossal synergy between ministries and agencies,” he said at the “Weekly Brief with Sandi Uno,” according to an official statement released here on Wednesday.

The Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy is collaborating with other ministries and agencies, for example, the Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing, for the construction of road infrastructure, arrangements of areas, provision of clean water and sanitation, and the construction of tourist accommodations.

The ministry is also collaborating with the Transportation Ministry for the improvement of land connectivity and with other stakeholders from the central and regional governments to encourage investment in the construction of infrastructure from state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and the private sector.

Deputy for destination and infrastructure development at the ministry Vinsesius Jemadu said that the development of the five DSPs and eight tourism SEZs has shown significant progress.

“Regarding the development of eight tourism SEZs, we are grateful that most of them have shown significant progress because there are still several SEZs that still need special attention to push the investment,” he said.

Jemadu expressed gratitude for the contribution of the Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing to infrastructure development.

President director of the Lake Toba Authority Board Jimmy Bernando Panjaitan said that the Lake Toba DSP in North Sumatra has seen positive developments in the 3A aspect.

Meanwhile, director for destinations at the Borobudur Authority Board Agustin Peranginangin said that there has been positive growth in the Borobudur DSP area for welcoming the Christmas and New Year holidays, namely an increase in flights and 20 tourism villages that are ready for tourists.

 

Source: Antara News

The Job Creation Law has ensured the protection of workers in terms of industrial relations and labor inspections, Manpower Minister Ida Fauziyah has emphasized.

“In terms of work relations, the Job Creation Law has regulated well how work relations are based on the (length of contracts), and there we guarantee that contract workers are also given social protection,” she informed at the “2023 Indonesia Economic Outlook Program — Maintaining Economic Resilience through Structural Transformation,” which was accessed online on Wednesday.

In relation to salary issues, the Job Creation Law has set the minimum wage as a safety net and introduced productivity-based wages for workers with more than one year of service.

In relation to the social security aspect, the ministry is trying to increase worker protection against the risk of job loss by introducing a new social security system, namely, job loss insurance.

“This is not really familiar yet, but its implementation has been going on since April 2022. Workers who have lost their jobs, who have experienced lay-offs, are guaranteed a job loss guarantee,” she informed.

Fauziyah said that the job loss guarantee is the first step to developing a lifelong learning system regulated in Articles 25 and Article 30 of Government Regulation Number 37 of 2021 about Job Loss Guarantee services through the employment of information systems.

Under the guarantee, Social Security will provide the most cash for 6 months, which will amount to 45 percent of the wages in the first 3 months and 25 percent of the wages in the next 3 months.

The ministry is also pushing for the establishment of workers’ health facilities at companies. This includes the allocation of government assistance for overcoming several conditions that affect workers’ ability nationally.

“In 2020, 2021, 2022, we gave wage subsidy assistance as a form of the state’s presence in conditions in which workers experience power problems. The government is also present by providing wage subsidy assistance,” Fauziyah informed.

It also pursued social dialogue through the empowerment of the relevant stakeholders in formulating policies and solving problems related to manpower issues.

 

Source: Antara News

Mother’s Day commemoration activities can serve as an important platform for promoting gender equality, Minister of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection, Bintang Puspayoga, has said.

“We have not found equality until 94 years of the struggle for the women’s movement, which was driven by the holding of the first congress in 1928 in Yogyakarta. So, this is what we really need to pursue. We are talking about the issue of women’s participation not only during the independence period, (in the) pre-independence (era) women’s participation was extraordinary,” she pointed out during a working visit to commemorate Mother’s Day in Bengkulu on Wednesday.

Based on historical records, Mother’s Day marks the first Indonesian Women’s Congress, which was held in Yogyakarta on December 22–25, 1928. The congress aimed to unite Indonesian women’s associations into one single association.

December 22 is considered an important milestone in the history of the rise of Indonesian women, and therefore, the date was designated as Mother’s Day, based on the decision of the III Women’s Congress in Bandung in 1938.

According to Puspayoga, the current challenge is the recognition of women’s participation, which is important for Indonesia.

When looking at the data and indexes, the level of gender disparity seen is still rather concerning.

The commemoration of Mother’s Day in Bengkulu, the city where Fatmawati—who sowed the national flag before Indonesia’s independence was proclaimed—was born, can serve as an encouragement for women to continue to work to become independent, innovative, creative, and always improve their quality so that everyone can prosper.

“Hopefully, by holding this year’s Mother’s Day commemoration in a region (Bengkulu) that has made history, in the future, what we hope and aspire to for Indonesian women can be equal to that of men. This is where the momentum can be for women all over Indonesia,” the minister said.

House of Representatives (DPR) Speaker Puan Maharani earlier lauded the contribution of women at the “Women’s Inspiration Fest” competition in which many women won photo and writing competitions in various categories.

“As women leaders, we must help and support Indonesian women to work together to build the nation and the state. Apart from that, as women leaders, we must work harder to prove that we (women) are capable,” Maharani said.

Equal participation of women and men is key for the welfare of a nation, deputy for gender equality at the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection, Lenny N. Rosalin, said earlier.

“Equal and full participation of women and men is the key to the welfare and success of a nation,” she observed during a national webinar on “Optimizing Women’s Potential in Entrepreneurship with a Gender Perspective,” which was followed from here last Tuesday.

Based on an analysis by the McKinsey Global Institute, Indonesia can increase its gross domestic product (GDP) by US$135 billion per year by 2025 if women’s economic participation is increased, Rosalin pointed out.

For this reason, efforts to empower women in the economic field need to be strengthened, she said.

Based on data from the Ministry of Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), in 2019, there were a total of 65.5 million business units in Indonesia. Of the number, 99.99 percent were micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

“More than half of those MSME players were women,” she highlighted.

 

Source: Antara News