Indonesia News Gazette

Jakarta (ANTARA) – Though Jakarta’s economy improved in the first quarter of 2021 compared to the previous quarter, people’s purchasing power has yet to recover, the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) Office in Jakarta has said.

The economy contracted 1.65 percent yoy (year-on-year) in the first quarter of 2021 compared to 2.14 percent yoy in the previous quarter.

The inflation rate in March 2021 also fell to 0.06 percent , lower than the previous month and the year-ago period.

“Although the inflation rate in March 2021 remained safe, the public’s purchasing power has yet to return to normal,” head of the BPS Office in Jakarta, Buyung Airlangga, said in a written statement on Friday. This has been indicated by the average per capita provincial gross domestic product (PDRB), based on quarterly constant price, which fell to Rp43 million in the first quarter of 2021 from Rp43.4 million in 2019, he informed.

In addition, the proportion of household spending on food, based on the current price, rose to 26.46 percent in the first quarter of 2021 from 24.9 percent in 2019.

In contrast, the proportion of household spending on non-food items fell to 73.54 percent in the first quarter of 2021 from 75.09 percent in 2019.

“On average household spending declined from Rp2.32 million in September, 2019 to Rp2.15 million in March, 2021,” Airlangga said. The drop in the people’s purchasing power was inseparable from low income and productivity levels in several sectors in the first quarter of 2021, he noted. One of the affected sectors was manufacturing, which contracted 0.06 percent, he said.

The sector which contracted the most was accommodation and other services due to public mobility restrictions (PPKM), he added.

“The low purchasing power was also the result of disrupted income sources due to the pandemic. This is evident from the high open unemployment rate and the worsening manpower indicators owing to the pandemic,” he said.

Source: Antara News

Batam (ANTARA) – The Indonesian Embassy in Singapore and Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Uno organized a virtual tour of tourist destinations and a discussion on ‘Road to the 10 New Bali’ at the embassy on Thursday.

During the discussion, participants were introduced to tourist spots in Labuan Bajo and Bromo through videos and photos.

“Tourism is a powerful weapon that can be utilized to recover Indonesia’s economy post-pandemic,” Uno stated in a press release issued by the Indonesian Embassy in Singapore on Friday.

The event on Thursday was part of a series of discussions organized to promote the second edition of the book Road to the 10 New Bali.

Thursday’s discussion, streamed as episode five of the discussion series, focused on Labuan Bajo and Bromo.

The 10 New Bali book was compiled by the Indonesian diaspora in Singapore as well as foreigners keen on photography and Indonesian tourists, Uno said.

The book will help accelerate preparations to present more qualified and sustainable tourism and creative economy sectors, he added.

Concurring with Uno, Indonesian Ambassador to Singapore Suryo Pratomo expressed the hope that the book as well as the embassy’s endeavors towards tourism promotion would support the Indonesian tourism sector’s development.

The second edition of the book not only features pictures of 10 leading tourist destinations — Lake Toba, Belitung, Tanjung Lesung, Seribu Islands, Prambanan and Borobudur Temples, Bromo Tenger Semeru National Park, Mandalika Lombok, Labuan Bajo and Komodo National Park, Wakatobi, and Morotai, but it also provides important information for travelers planning to visit the destinations, he said.

During the discussion, photographers shared stories behind the photos and videos of Labuan Bajo and Bromo with participants, he added.

The embassy said it expects the creative promotion of Indonesia’s tourist destinations to make travelers keen to visit Indonesia after the pandemic ends.

Source: Antara News

Jakarta (ANTARA) – Manpower Minister Ida Fauziyah said the government’s wage subsidy program (bantuan subsidi upah or BSU) was expected to help prevent workers affected by COVID-19 from getting laid off amid the enforcement of public activity restrictions (PPKM).

“The BSU (aid) is expected to increase purchasing power and ensure the prosperity of the workers. The aid is also expected to assist employers in maintaining their businesses during COVID-19 pandemic,” the minister said here Thursday.

“Through this aid, we hope the harmonious and conducive relations within companies are maintained, so, once again, termination of employment can be avoided,” Fauziyah said.

She hoped that the BSU scheme would be able to reduce companies’ burden so that employers and employees can work together to find solutions to the impacts of the pandemic.

Under the BSU 2021, eight trillion Indonesian rupiahs (about US$551 thousand) will be allocated to eight million people, with each beneficiary receiving Rp1 million (about US$69) via bank transfer, the minister added.

The aid amount is still an estimate as the data is still being worked on by the Workers Social Security Agency (BPJS Ketenagakerjaan), Fauziyah pointed out.

To receive the aid, workers need to be Indonesian citizens, registered under the Worker Social Security Program (Jamsostek), and still active in BPJS Ketenagakerjaan, she informed.

The aid will only be provided to workers living in PPKM Level 4 Zones, as laid out in Ministry of Home Affairs Instruction No. 20 Year 2021 to No. 23 Year 2021 on Micro Community Activities Restriction Enforcement and Optimizing Corona Virus Disease 2019 Handling Posts in Village Levels for Corona Virus Disease 2019 Spread Control, she said.

The beneficiaries will be required to pay a fee, which will be accounted for from the Rp3.5-million salary, as reported by employers to BPJS Ketenagakerjaan, she said.

The BSU will be provided to workers from sectors impacted by the PPKM, such as the consumption industry, trade and services, except education and healthcare, transportation, miscellaneous industries, property, and real estate, Fauziyah said.

“BPJS Ketenagakerjaan has been chosen as the data source since, at the moment, it has the most accurate and complete (data), thus (making it) accountable and valid to be used by the government as the basis for allocating the subsidy fast and accurately,” she added.

Source: Antara News

Jakarta (ANTARA) – Bank Indonesia (BI) has projected the global economy will grow from 5.7 percent to 5.8 percent in 2021 due to increasing financial market uncertainty and the spread of the Delta variant of the coronavirus in several countries.

One of the factors driving global economic recovery is the revival in international trade, Bank Indonesia Governor Perry Warjiyo said here on Thursday while announcing the results of the July, 2021 board of governors meeting.

“Trade volume and world commodity prices are also estimated to be higher, thus supporting improved export performance in developing countries, including Indonesia,” he noted.

He said BI’s forecast is also supported by an increase in economic growth in the United States (US) and the European region, along with the acceleration of vaccinations and continued fiscal and monetary stimulus. Meanwhile, China’s economic growth is also recorded to remain high, he added.

The economic outlook for India and the ASEAN region is likely to be lower due to the policy of restricting people’s mobility to cope with the resurgence of COVID-19 cases, Warjiyo said.

However, uncertainty in the global financial markets is expected to increase, driven by market concerns about the surge in COVID-19 cases and its impact on the world economic outlook, as well as anticipation of plans to reduce monetary stimulus or tapering by the US Central Bank, the Fed, he added.

These conditions will push the diversion of capital flows to financial assets that are considered safe or flight to quality, resulting in limited capital flows and pressure on exchange rates in developing countries, including Indonesia, he projected.

The adjustment of capital outflows from developing countries also caused the rupiah exchange rate on July 21, 2021 to weaken by 0.29 percent point-to-point and 1.14 percent on average compared to at the end of June, 2021, he noted.

“With these developments, the rupiah as of July 21, 2021 was recorded to have depreciated around 3.39 percent compared to the figure at the end of 2020, relatively lower than the depreciation of currencies in a number of other developing countries, such as Philippines, Malaysia, and Thailand,” Warjiyo said.

Source: Antara News

Jakarta (ANTARA) – The Ministry of Industry has said it is planning to set up an Engineering Center for laptop production to create market for domestically produced laptops and attract investment in related industries.

“In order to create a market based on industry scale, we need to initiate a laptop designed to cater to the government’s needs, through establishing an engineering center,” Industry Minister Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita said at an online press conference originating from Jakarta on Thursday.

Establishing an Engineering Center to protect Intellectual Property (IP) and support the main components of laptops, among other things, could bring great opportunities for the development of domestic industries, not only large industries, but also small industries, the minister added.

Based on the ministry’s calculations, the assembly of 1-2 million laptops in Indonesia could encourage original design manufacturers (ODM) to become interested in strengthening the laptop ecosystem in Indonesia, he said.

“With support from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology (Kemendikbudristek), we can domestically assemble 300-400 thousand units. We need support from related stakeholders to expand our domestic laptop market share,” he informed.

The Engineering Center can also aid the development of the domestic semiconductor industry, Kartasasmita pointed out.

The semiconductor industry will produce strategic products in the future, especially in the Industrial Era 4.0, which will include chipsets for all industrial activities and daily needs, he elaborated.

“Thus, we must have independence in design and semiconductors production,” he said.

He also said he is currently finalizing a regulation on the procedure for the calculation of local content requirement (TKDN) for laptop production to support the development of the domestic industry.

The goal of the regulation is to increase investment and human resources to support the Bangga Buatan Indonesia (Proud of Made-in-Indonesia) program, Kartasasmita said.

“We hope our program will boost confidence in our people to have a domestic product in order to obtain national branding on the global (stage),” he added.

In order to encourage investment and produce more electronic components domestically, Kartasasmita said a production line is required as part of the TKDN assessment.

“In addition, we are encouraging software development to fulfill needs in education, offices, and design for domestic manufactures,” the minister added.

Source: Antara News

Jakarta (ANTARA) – As many as 548 thousand children out of the targeted 11.9 million children in the age group of 12-17 years have received COVID-19 vaccine shots, the Ministry of Health has reported.

“The vaccination drive for children in the age group of 12-17 years is focused on local health facilities or their respective schools,” the Health Ministry’s COVID-19 vaccinations spokesperson, Siti Nadia Tarmizi, said during an online dialogue hosted by the National COVID-19 Handling and Economic Recovery Committee (KPC-PEN) here on Thursday.

Vaccination drives at local healthcare facilities (Fasyankes) are focused on vaccinating teenagers aged 12-17 who are not enrolled in any educational institutions, while teenagers enrolled in schools are being directed to get vaccinated at schools hosting vaccination drives, Tarmizi informed.

Vaccines for teenagers have been distributed nationwide, with 50 percent of vaccines allocated for Java-Bali provinces and the rest proportionally to other provinces, she added.

“We currently have a policy of distributing 50 percent of vaccines to Java-Bali provinces due to the recent spike in COVID-19 cases there, and the rest of the vaccines will be distributed proportionally to other provinces. Those portioning already includes vaccines for teenagers,” Tarmizi said.

The current vaccine stock in Indonesia is just 130 million doses, a mere 30 percent of the 426 million doses necessary to satisfy the national vaccination target, she pointed out.

The target of the vaccination program has also been increased from 181.5 million to 208 million, she added.

The 16.9 million recipients of the second vaccine dose account for 7 percent of the target, while the 43.3 million recipients of the first vaccine dose represent 15 percent of the target, as per records collated yesterday afternoon (July 21, 2021).

“We need to meet the target in these seven months, at least to achieve 90 percent of our initial target of 181.5 million,” Tarmizi remarked.

Source: Antara News

Jakarta (ANTARA) – The Industry Ministry is trying to boost the performance of the paper industry to improve the national economy by providing competent human resources, an official has said.

“The availability of skilled workers has become an important factor in supporting the development of the industry as this sector absorbs a vast number of workers,” said chief of Industry Human Resources Development Agency (BPSDMI) at the Industry Ministry Arus Gunawan on Thursday.

He made the statement after virtually inking a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with seven paper manufacturers for opening a higher education program equivalent to Diploma 1 (D1) on paper technology.

The event was also attended by the chief of the Center for Pulp and Paper (BPPK) and Indonesian Cellulose Foundation (YASI).

The graduates of the program will be placed in the seven companies — PT. Eco Paper Indonesia, PT. Surabaya Mekabox, PT. Kertas Padalarang, PT. Enggal Subur Kertas, PT. Pemalang Agro Wangi, PT. Budi Makmur Perkasa, as well as PT. Indah Kiat Pulp and Paper Tbk Serang Mill, Gunwan informed.

The program will help 899 students gain vocational education and work directly in the industry, he said. The students will come from 10 provinces and 12 districts/cities across Indonesia, he added.

“The demand for human resources in the pulp and paper industry reached 241,661 people in 2020, meanwhile, this number is expected to rise by as many as 10,563 workers this year,” he revealed.

Director of PT Indah Kiat Pulp and Paper Tbk Serang Mill, Heppy Moiras, said he supports the program as it will be crucial for providing skilled human resources that cannot be obtained through regular educational programs.

Iken Retnowulan, chief of the Industry Vocation Education Development Center, said the Polytechnic of Industrial Management Institute (STMI), Jakarta will offer the vocation program through the Polymer Chemical Engineering Undergraduates Program.

“The study will be completed in two semesters with a total of 43 credits. Meanwhile, the Industrial Work Practice will be conducted in the respective supporting manufactures and BPPK’s laboratory,” she said.

The Polytechnic of STMI Jakarta has seen two batches of the higher education program equivalent to Diploma 1 (D1) on Heavy-duty Equipment, run by the Industrial Technic Undergraduates Program in cooperation with PT. Komatsu Indonesia, she added.

The government is confident of the competitiveness of the industry as Indonesian pulp manufacturers have managed to reach the 8th position in global rankings, meanwhile, paper producers are in the 6th position, the agency chief noted.

Domestic and export requests for pulp and paper products are still promising, he said. Together with the rise in e-commerce, they will boost the growth of Indonesian pulp and paper production, he added.

Despite the pandemic, global demand for pulp and paper products still rose 2.1 percent. Meanwhile, domestic demand has surged 63 percent in the last five years.

In 2019, Indonesia’s national paper production reached 10.1 million tons, with consumption at 6.3 million tons. Meanwhile, the export potential of pulp was recorded at 5.3 million tons.

Source: Antara News

Kominfo provides basecamps or training centers in 10 areas

Jakarta (ANTARA) – The Ministry of Communication and Informatics (Kominfo) has offered training to micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to support them in actively selling their products on online platforms.

“Kominfo provides basecamps or training centers in 10 areas. Phase 1 was held on July 3-4, 2021, Phase 2 on August 1-2, and Phase 3 from August to November 2021. The last phase will take place from November to December this year,” the ministry’s acting Director of Digital Economy, Directorate General of Information Applications, I Nyoman Adhiarna, noted in a press statement, here on Wednesday.

The 10 training areas aforementioned are the 10 Priority Tourism Destinations (DPP): Toba Lake (North Sumatra), Tanjung Kalayang (Belitung), Thousand Islands (Jakarta), Borobudur (Central Java), Bromo Tengger Semeru (East Java), Tanjung Lesung (Banten), Mandalika (West Nusa Tenggara), Labuan Bajo (East Nusa Tenggara), Wakatobi (Southeast Sulawesi), and Morotai (North Maluku), and the two provinces of West Java and Yogyakarta.

The ministry has targeted this training program to ramp up 26 thousand MSMEs to actively sell their products on digital platforms.

This training program involves 90 facilitators, who will provide material on actively selling online, including uploading photos and providing product descriptions, interacting with customers, and sales transactions.

The government is optimistic that this program would help to increase online sales transactions of MSMEs.

For the training program, the ministry has prepared five modules: social media, e-commerce platforms, financial technology, point of sales (PoS), and Industry 4. The ministry has developed these modules in collaboration with the Faculty of Computer Science, the University of Indonesia.

Kominfo will also provide free phone credit for internet access, online training, and the free Jubilo aggregator application, so that MSME players can monitor sales at various market locations.

The application additionally functions as a point of sales (PoS) application, thereby nullifying the need for MSME players to open e-commerce applications one by one to monitor sales.

The phone credits offered are equivalent to five training sessions held by video conferencing and using the app. If the participants still encounter problems, then the supervisor will visit them directly.

This program applies to all MSMEs that produce their own products though barring retailers. Types of businesses included in this program are those in the areas of food and beverage; textiles and apparel; furniture; leather craft; and handicrafts.

Implementation of the training will involve the local Kominfo offices. For complete information, MSME players can contact the Directorate of Digital Economy at telephone number 021-3451363 and email tu.ditedig_aptika@kominfo.go.id.

Source: ANTARA News