VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

A screenshot of senior deputy governor of Bank Indonesia, Destry Damayanti - 

Micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) loan growth exceeded the total credit growth as of June 2021, in sharp contrast with June 2020, senior deputy governor of Bank Indonesia, Destry Damayanti, has revealed.

"The latest credit developments as of June, MSME loans continue to show positive signals. (As per) The latest data in the second quarter of 2021, MSME loan growth has exceeded total credit growth," she said during an online discussion on the acceleration of MSME digitization, originating from Jakarta on Friday.

Based on data provided by Bank Indonesia, MSME loan growth stood at 0.13 percent in June, 2020, while total credit growth was pegged at 1.49 percent. Meanwhile, in June, 2021, MSME loan growth reached 2.35 percent, while total credit growth was recorded at 0.59 percent.

In terms of segmentation, MSME credit growth was the highest in the medium and small segments, while micro credit growth continued to contract, Damayanti said.

New loans in the MSME sector, which has the largest share of credit, were recorded in the trade sector, both retail and large, especially the food and beverage trade sector, she added.

BI also noted an increase in new credit disbursement, which even exceeded credit repayments. As of June, 2021, new credit disbursement stood at Rp72.23 trillion, while loan repayments were pegged at Rp60.21 trillion, she informed.

In addition, there was an improvement in the performance of MSMEs in 2021, Damayanti noted.

According to a survey conducted by the Mandiri Institute, as of April, 2021, around 84.8 percent of MSMEs were operating normally, 8.1 percent were operating on a limited basis, and 7.2 percent had halted operations, she said.

This number reflects an increase compared to 2020, when only 35.2 percent of MSMEs were operating normally, 34.5 percent were operating on a limited basis, and 30.4 percent had halted operations amid the pandemic, she added.

Although there was an improvement in the MSME sector, Damayanti reiterated that the key to economic recovery will be the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia.

"So, we are required to carry out health protocols in a disciplined manner, vaccination continues to be accelerated," she remarked.

The decline in mobility due to the implementation of the public activity restrictions (PPKM) has had an impact on the performance of the MSME sector, she said//ANT