VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The Ministry of Investment is collaborating with digital wallet company DANA to jointly advance micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Indonesia, especially in accessing financial inclusion and achieving legality.

"The hope from the signing of this agreement is that supports can be implemented properly, especially in the context of supporting risk-based business licensing, as mandated by the law for MSME actors," deputy for investment cooperation at the ministry, Riyatno, said at a virtual event on Monday.

Under the memorandum of understanding, the Ministry of Investment will cooperate with digital wallet company DANA to realize four developments for MSME actors.

The first is information dissemination for MSME actors on applying for a business license. Next is business licensing facilitation for MSME actors by the Ministry of Investment.

The third is assistance for MSME actors in the form of support for overcoming barriers to business.

The last is training for MSME actors to enhance their skills and abilities, especially in terms of honing digital skills to increase competence and competitiveness in the industry.

According to Riyatno, these efforts would help Indonesian MSMEs to level up and enter the digital ecosystem that the government is currently developing.

He said that improving the standard of MSMEs to make them better and optimal would help absorb more workers, which consequently, would have a positive impact not only on the local economy but also on the national economy.

According to Statistics Indonesia (BPS) records, Indonesia has 64.2 million MSMEs that have absorbed around 120 million workers and have helped the country's economy to remain stable amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

For that reason, MSMEs have become a priority to be developed and facilitated so that they can increase their contribution to Indonesia's economy.

"The hope is that by helping MSMEs in obtaining various facilities, developing local talents, providing job opportunities, this collaboration can boost Indonesia's national economy to improve," Riyatno remarked. (antaranews)