Month: December 2022

Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi on Thursday chaired a coordination meeting on controlling public mobility during New Year’s Eve at the Central Java Regional Police Headquarters in Semarang city.

“I was assigned by President Joko Widodo to handle the mobility in the holidays period to prevent a spike in COVID-19 cases so that economic activities can continue to run,” he said in a statement received here on Thursday.

He informed that in the province, his ministry will focus on Kalikangkung village, Pangkah sub-district, Tegal district, since a surge in people’s mobility has been projected for the area.

“Hence, I ask the Central Java Regional Police chief to calculate the estimated number of passing vehicles, thus the mobility can be anticipated properly,” he remarked.

Furthermore, the minister urged people who do not have any urgent business to remain at home. If they are required to travel, they must strictly follow the health protocols, he said.

He also asked for a ramp check for tourism buses to maintain their safety.

In addition, he instructed officials to monitor several disaster-prone areas in the province, such as Banjarnegara district and Banyumas district.

Meanwhile, Central Java Regional Police chief, Inspector General Ahmad Lutfi, said that the police have prepared several traffic diversion plans, including one-way flow and contra flow, to anticipate traffic jams on New Year’s Eve or amid the flow of returning travelers.

He also said that the regional police will close town squares, not issue crowd permits, and secure resting areas, in collaboration with the COVID-19 Task Force.

Furthermore, the provincial secretary of Central Java, Sumarno, said that the provincial government will also monitor the implementation of the health protocols at tourism destinations.

According to data from the Indonesia Toll Road Authority (BPJT), the number of vehicles entering Central Java province has increased by 25 percent, while only 10 percent have returned from the province.

After chairing the meeting on Thursday, the minister reviewed public mobility at Semarang Tawang Station and distributed masks to passengers. He also reminded them to remain disciplined in observing the health protocols.

Source: Antara News

The Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) is eyeing to complete the construction of Ameroro Dam in Southeast Sulawesi in 2023.

“Ameroro Dam is one of the three dams prepared to reduce the risk of flooding and increase the supply of irrigated water in South Sulawesi,” PUPR Minister Basuki Hadimuljono noted in a statement received in Jakarta, Friday.

The first dam is Ladongi, with a capacity of 45.9 million cubic meters and an inundation area of 222 hectares, which will be used to reduce flood risk by 176.62 cubic meters per second and irrigate an irrigation area of 3,604 hectares.

The second is Ameroro Dam, with a capacity of 54.53 million cubic meters and an inundation area of 244 hectares. The third is Pelosika Dam, which will later dam the Konawe River and is currently still under preparation, or in the review design stage.

The construction of Ameroro Dam began in 2020, with Rp1.6 trillion sourced from the state budget. Currently, the work to build the dam has reached 26.82-percent completion and is targeted to be ready in 2023.

The construction of Ameroro Dam was conducted in two work packages: Package I by contractors PT Wijaya Karya-PT Sumber Cahaya Agung-PT Basuki Rahmanta Putra (KSO) and Package II by PT Hutama Karya-PT Adhi Karya (KSO).

Ameroro Dam is included in the list of National Strategic Projects (PSN) according to Presidential Regulation (Perpres) Number 109 of 2020 to increase the number of water reservoirs in Southeast Sulawesi in order to support food security and water availability programs.

As a buffer zone for Kendari City, the capital of Southeast Sulawesi, Konawe District is expected to continue to develop, including through development of the nickel industry as well as the agricultural, fishery, and livestock sectors that require raw water sourced from dams. The completion of Ameroro Dam is projected to meet the raw water demand of 511 liters per second.

The dam can accommodate the water flow of Lasolo Konaweha River and can be used for irrigating an area of 3,363 hectares as well as for reducing flooding in the downstream area by 443.3 cubic meters per second.

In addition, it has the potential to be a source for the production of 1.3 Megawatts from Micro-Hydro Power Plants (PLTMH) and 8.2 Megawatts from Solar Power Plants (PLTS) as well as offers new tourist destinations in Konawe District.

Source: Antara News

Villages, Disadvantaged Regions Development, and Transmigration Minister Abdul Halim Iskandar assessed that villages were able to support the national economy amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It must be admitted that the village economy has been able to support the national economy,” Iskandar noted in a written statement here on Friday.

One of the factors that support the village economy’s resilience during the pandemic is the continued increase in village funds from year to year. This village funding is the primary backing for the village budget (APBDes).

The Village Fund Program existed in 2014 or before, with the average village budget per village reaching Rp329 million. In 2015, when the Village Fund was disbursed, the village budget increased to Rp701 million per village. In 2021, the average village budget jumped to Rp1.6 billion per village.

“Amid the pandemic, APBDes continued to increase, from a total of Rp117 trillion in 2019 to Rp121 trillion in 2021,” Iskandar noted.

The minister pointed out that the high amount of village funds had reflected positively on several essential sectors that support the national economy.

For instance, during the pandemic, the villagers’ income had increased, from Rp882,829 per capita per month to Rp971,445 per capita per month.

“This increase in the villagers’ income is partly due to the Padat Karya Tunai Desa (PKTD) program during the pandemic,” he pointed out.

The requisite material for various village-level infrastructure projects are procured from local sellers and local residents are employed in the projects, he stated.

Thus, the minister noted that the project had helped to bring under control the unemployment in villages.

According to Iskandar, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the open unemployment rate in villages had remained low and only rose, from 3.92 percent to 4.71 percent.

Economic inequality in villages also remained low and continued to be evenly distributed.

“This means the village economy remains positive and also serves as a form of support for the national economy during the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020 to 2021,” he affirmed.

Source: Antara News

Deputy Governor of Jakarta Ahmad Riza Patria saw off the shipment of 61.2 thousand tons of agricultural commodities, worth Rp906.14 billion, at the Tanjung Priok Port, North Jakarta, on Friday.

Patria lauded the exports of the commodities to several countries by PT Jakarta International Container Terminal (JITC), considering that the agricultural sector is one of the mainstays of income for Indonesia apart from taxes, minerals, and coal.

The agricultural field continues to grow amid the COVID-19 pandemic. At the end of 2021, exports of agricultural commodities will take place concurrently at 34 export gates across Indonesia. The export volume was recorded at 1.36 million tons, worth Rp. 14.4 trillion, to 124 destination countries.

“This is certainly successful because of the support from various sectors,” he affirmed.

Information related to agricultural commodities received in the international market should be disseminated, so that those in areas with good work ethics in agriculture can know what to produce, he explained.

The deputy governor also invited all stakeholders to work together in realizing sustainable and global agriculture.

Also present at the export shipment event were Jakarta Police Chief Inspector General Fadil Imran and the Tanjung Priok Agricultural Quarantine Head Hasrul.

Source: Antara News

The Sexual Violence Bill (RUU TPKS) and the Personal Data Protection Bill (RUU PDP) should be the main priorities for the government in 2022, political analyst from Pelita Harapan University Emrus Sihombing has said.

“The Sexual Violence Bill and Personal Data Protection Bill are urgent priorities,” he said when contacted by ANTARA from here on Friday.

The two bills are closely related to human rights, especially the Sexual Violence Bill, he added. Throughout 2021, social media have been filled with sexual violence issues, with perpetrators coming from various backgrounds—from family, school, work, he noted.

This situation has indicated that Indonesia urgently needs legal certainty against sexual violence, he affirmed.

In addition, cases involving data leaks, both from public and private agencies, have been repeatedly reported throughout the year, he pointed out.

When civil servants or public employees in charge of processing data intentionally leak personal data, they must receive the most severe sanctions, Sihombing emphasized.

“The Sexual Violence Bill requires strict articles, while the Personal Data Protection Bill requires strict sanctions,” the political observer said.

The government has the responsibility to ensure the protection of everyone’s human rights, he stated. Meanwhile, legislators can realize this responsibility through regulations that they agree to pass, he added.

“If it is possible, I hope these two bills will be decided in early 2022 and become legislators’ main products. I think the scale should be super-priority,” he noted.

Source: Antara News

The Communication and Information Technology Ministry has said it will support Indonesia’s priority agendas at the G20 forum.

“Indonesia, through the Communication and Information Technology Ministry, will prioritize three issues in the Digital Economy Working Group (DEWG) (meetings),” spokesperson for the ministry, Dedy Permadi, said in a press statement released on Friday.

Apart from holding the G20 Presidency, Indonesia has been elected to lead the first Digital Economy Working Group, he noted.

At the Digital Economy Working Group meeting, the ministry will bring up three priority issues: connectivity and post-COVID-19 recovery, digital skills and digital literacy, and cross-border and trust-based free data flow, he informed.

“These three issues are expected to highlight the unequal digital economy landscape and can encourage concrete collaboration among the G20 member countries to create a more inclusive, secure, and sustainable digital economy ecosystem for the global world,” Permadi remarked.

The discussions on the issues will aim to support the overall priority agenda of Indonesia’s G20 Presidency, the spokesperson said. One of the priority agendas proposed by Indonesia during the Presidency is digital transformation, he noted.

The three priority agendas of Indonesia’s G20 Presidency comprise the global health architecture, digital and economic transformation, and energy transition, he said.

The majority of G20 member countries have expressed support for the agenda and priority issues raised by the Indonesian Presidency and DEWG, he added.

Indonesia’s Presidency of the G20 is expected to encourage real collaboration between member countries to create a more equitable and sustainable digital transformation, Permadi said. This collaboration will entail joint efforts to recover and reinforce resilience together, he added.

Digital transformation is expected to diminish the digital divide, both in terms of access to connectivity, people’s digital skills, and the use of cross-border data, he informed.

Digital transformation is also expected to bolster economic resilience during and after the COVID-19 pandemic, he added.

Source: Antara News

Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi symbolically flagged off the first export batch of container flat wagons produced by national rolling stock company PT INKA out of the 262 goods wagons ordered by New Zealand’s KiwiRail.

“Today, we sent the first two out of the 262 goods wagons for New Zealand. We must be proud of this achievement because New Zealand, as a developed country, gave us an opportunity to contribute to their country. The Transportation Ministry will offer full support for the production and export activities,” Sumadi stated at the PT INKA factory in Madiun, East Java, on Friday.

The minister expressed pride over PT INKA’s ability to create a product of international standards in keeping with President Joko Widodo’s resolve to boost national production and exports.

“We must be proud because we can export a commodity of high strategic and economic value,” he affirmed.

Apart from producing goods wagons, PT INKA has also built freight containers for shipment in the eastern Indonesian region and electric-powered bus that will be used at the G20 Summit in Bali, the minister noted.

“Those productive commodities will support national investment and boost economic growth and export,” Sumadi remarked.

The minister also instructed the management of PT INKA to keep up the good work and maintain the quality and price of their product to attract more foreign buyers.

Meanwhile, President Director of PT INKA Budi Noviantoro stated that the recent production of goods wagons and exports aimed to fulfil KiwiRail’s order.

“KiwiRail is a state-owned company of New Zealand that operates railway transportation in the country. KiwiRail is also the largest inter-island ferry operator in the country,” he noted.

After the two container flat wagons completed a test to assess compatibility with local rail tracks, the company will commence mass production in February 2022 that is expected to be completed in 18-20 months, as stipulated in the contract, the president director stated.

As the wagons have been made according to New Zealand’s specifications provided by KiwiRail, Noviantoro expressed optimism that the testing will yield a positive result.

The president director is confident that the INKA Group would acquire a notable market share in the Oceanian railway industry after supplying 262 goods wagons for New Zealand and completing earlier orders for BradkenRail of Australia.

The goods wagon export to New Zealand is PT INKA’s third in 2021. The company had earlier exported their product to the Philippines and Bangladesh and is continuing its efforts to penetrate African markets.

Source: Antara News

Presidential Staff Office (KSP) Deputy III Panutan Sulendrakusuma believes that the development of a unified single-data information system for micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) co-operatives will bolster market opportunity and the business ecosystem.

“The database will provide necessary information to the government to conceive a comprehensive programme and conduct intervention as well as enhance market opportunity and the business ecosystem,” Sulendrakusuma remarked.

Sulendrakusuma had earlier attended a coordination meeting with officials from the Ministry of Co-operatives and Small and Medium Enterprises and Statistics Indonesia in Jakarta on Friday.

The co-operatives ministry, the National Development Planning Agency, and Statistics Indonesia are currently developing a unified complete database of national micro, small, and medium enterprise co-operatives for the 2022-2024 period, he noted.

The complete database will register more than 14.5 million entities legally recognised as MSME co-operatives and is expected to cover all business units and companies in Indonesia, the deputy stated.

The database, once completed, will unify the data of MSME co-operatives collected by several institutions to promote institutional collaboration, he affirmed.

“The KSP will assist coordination between government institutions to expedite the completion of the single-data system,” Sulendrakusuma stated.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Co-operatives and Micro and Small Enterprises’ Deputy of Entrepreneurship Department, Siti Azizah, admitted that scattered and unstandardised MSMEs data hindered the authority from providing an effective empowerment programme to boost co-operatives and MSMEs.

“The unified single-data information system that integrates MSME co-operatives’ data will serve as an effective control and evaluation platform and provide the government with necessary data to conceive new policies,” she stated.

She expounded that the unified single-data information system will include some indicators: MSMEs’ contribution to the national GDP; employment level to assess poverty rate; MSMEs’ contribution to national export to assess local MSMEs’ competitiveness; and MSMEs’ contribution to investment and entrepreneur ratio.

“The single-data system is developed to boost quality economic growth, business climate, employment, and business competitiveness,” Azizah stated.

Source: Antara News