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Director General of Small, Medium and Various Industry, Gati Wibawaningsih (ANTARA)

The Indonesian Industry Ministry plans to impose safeguard measures to protect the national garment industry by preventing low-priced, imported products from flooding the markets.

"The Industry Ministry would provide protection through the imposition of safeguard measures for the garment industry. We have suggested this safeguard action on the basis that imports in the sector have increased during the past three years," the ministry's director general of Small, Medium and Various Industry, Gati Wibawaningsih, said in a statement in Jakarta on Friday.

According to the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS), imports of garment products reached US$2.38 billion in the 2017-2019 period.

"The high import value in the sector should be accorded serious attention by the Industry Ministry. High imports could block domestic market potential as imported products are relatively cheap," she cautioned.

A safeguard policy would not only protect the garment industry from the flow of imported products, but it could encourage the growth of the sector, she added.

"Protection for the garment industry is a must, considering that it made a significant contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of 5.4 percent in 2019," she remarked.

The safeguard measures, she said, would require synergy between the government, business associations, and business operators in the sector.

"We have to design these measures together. The government, business associations, and operators should work hand in hand to implement the safeguard measures," Wibawaningsih added.

The safeguard policy would be submitted to the Indonesian Trade Protection Committee (KPPI) of the Trade Ministry.

The imposition of the policy would be based on Government Regulation no. 34/2011 on anti-dumping, countervailing, and trade protection.

“Now is the right time to submit the safeguard policy. Hence, after the COVID-19 pandemic is handled and we return to normal conditions, the safeguard policy would be ready for implementation," she said. (ANTARA)