VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Jakarta (voinews): The Ministry of Industry has projected that the food and beverage industry will grow by up to seven percent in 2023, or reach the same level of growth as before the COVID-19 pandemic.

This optimism is also supported by industry players' optimism over the current condition, Director General of Agro-industry at the ministry Putu Juli Ardika said after opening the 2023 Eid Bazaar at the Ministry of Industry's Office here on Tuesday.

"The projection is that the food and beverage (industry) can grow between 5–7 percent," he said.

Ardika noted that the food and beverage industry has continued to grow significantly since the pandemic. In 2022, it recorded a growth of 4.9 percent, a significant increase compared to growth of 2.54 percent the previous year.

In addition, based on the Industrial Optimism Index (IKI), the food and beverage industry is still expanding strongly. The industrial optimism of the food and beverage industry is also deemed relatively high.

"For the next six months, food and beverage industry players stated that (they are) very optimistic; most of them, 76 percent (are optimistic of continuous expansion)," he pointed out.

He also noted that the positive growth is projected to reach pre-pandemic levels. This is because the industrial utilization in the food and beverage sector has already matched the utilization before the pandemic.

"Before the pandemic, it (growth) was at around 6–7 percent for food and beverage. In terms of utilization, it is almost the same as before the pandemic," he noted.

The Ministry of Industry recorded that the non-oil and gas processing industry contributed 16.48 percent to the national gross domestic product (GDP) in 2022. Then, the food and beverage industry contributed the most to the non-oil and gas processing industry, with its contribution pegged at 38.35 percent.

As of the fourth quarter of 2022, the export value of the food and beverage industry reached US$48.61 billion, or 16.65 percent of the total national exports. Meanwhile, the import value stood at US$16.52 billion, resulting in a surplus of US$32.09 billion in the trade balance. (Antaranews)

Jakarta (voinews): The general elections will take place on February 14, 2024, as per an earlier agreement made by the government, parliament, and election organizer, Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Mahfud MD has affirmed.

"God Willing, the election planned for February 14, 2024, will take place accordingly (to its schedule)," he said after a working meeting with Commission III of the House of Representatives (DPR) at the Parliament Complex here on Tuesday.

There will be no more disputes regarding the 2024 elections timetable, with the Jakarta High Court ruling in favor of the General Elections Commission (KPU), which appealed the Central Jakarta District Court's March verdict instructing it to suspend the 2024 General Election preparations for more than two years, he added.

The KPU had appealed the March 2, 2023, ruling at the higher court on March 10, and the appeal brief was submitted to the court on March 21.

"Now, the legal issue that caused (our election to remain) in limbo has been resolved today," the minister said.

While another legal process to the Supreme Court remains possible, the coordinating minister said that substantially, the latest verdict emphasizes that the court is not authorized to modify the 2024 elections schedule.

Hence, Mahfud asked all parties to redirect their focus to preparing for the election so that it can take place in a timely manner and expressed the hope that the KPU, based on the court’s decision, will be bolstered to prepare for the elections and implement their decisions.

"(Possible appeals in the election system) ought to end at the General Elections Supervisory Agency and the State Administrative Court," he said.

The Jakarta High Court decision, as read by Chief Judge Sugeng Riyono at the trial session on Tuesday, effectively overturned Central Jakarta District Court's decision No. 757/pdtg/2022 on March 2, 2023, which the KPU appealed.

The high court also accepted the electoral commission's argument that the Central Jakarta District Court has no competence or jurisdiction over the case filed by a minor party, the Just and Prosperous People's Party (Prima), following its failure to qualify for the elections. (Antaranews)

Jakarta (voinews): The Health Ministry has expressed its interest in running a pilot program for health services integration in Mojokerto City, East Java Province, in view of the digitalization programs and innovations pursued in the city.

"The Ministry of Health has a program to improve health services with digital utilization. We see that Mojokerto has a lot of digitalization and innovation programs, especially focusing on health services,"
basic data," the ministry's expert staff, Setiaji, said.

The ministry may be able to use the city as a pilot area for integrating health services, starting from independent doctors, primary, secondary, and support services, because Mojokerto already has adequate basic data, Setiaji informed during a visit to Rumah Rakyat in Mojokerto on Tuesday.

He also lauded the approach taken by Mojokerto Mayor Ika Puspitasari and described it as very precise in improving basic health data.

"The approach taken is very precise. It knows the target, the patients, and the interventions needed. The mayor is also focused on increasing the budget two times from the minimum standard. She is paying great attention to the health sector," Setiaji informed.

The visit by the Ministry of Health's SatuSehat integration monitoring team was welcomed by Mayor Puspitasari, who was accompanied by the acting head of Health, Population Control, and Family Planning Service, Dr. Farida Mariana, and the director of Wahidin Sudiro Husodo Mojokerto General Hospital, Dr. Sulaiman Rosyid.

Meanwhile, Mayor Puspitasari said that she has been paying attention to data integration since 2019 by initiating the GAYATRI (Integrated Information Services Gate) movement in Mojokerto, starting from the health sector.

In Mojokerto, health issues take up the largest portion of the budget compared to other sectors, above the mandatory spending, of up to above 20 percent, she noted.

"At first, I saw that the portion of the budget was large but not equal to the outcome. Therefore, I personally directed and observed our health services with the GAYATRI movement. I want it to be the initiator," she said.

Before meeting with the mayor, the SatuSehat team visited four community health centers (puskesmas) and one Regional General Hospital in Mojokerto City.

The SatuSehat platform is a part of the Health Ministry's efforts to transform health services through digitalization. It offers data connectivity, analysis, and services to support the integration of inter-applications and health facilities. (Antaranews)

Jakarta (voinews): The Home Affairs Ministry sought to ensure a conducive and resilient economic, social, and cultural situation ahead of the 2024 General Elections by holding a national coordination meeting here on Tuesday.

"This coordination meeting on economic, social, and cultural resilience emphasizes on strengthening our social harmony to carry out a safe and peaceful 2024 election stage," Director General for Politics and General Administration at the ministry Bahtiar remarked.

His party had invited all related ministries and institutions, governors, district heads, mayors, as well as other stakeholders to attend the meeting

"We (also) invite the Social Affairs Ministry, Bappenas (National Development Planning Agency), BNN (National Narcotics Agency), Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Ministry, police, prosecutors, and so on," he said.

This is the first time that the ministry organized a national coordination meeting to discuss sociocultural resilience, he noted.

Meanwhile, other issues, such as those related to politics, economy, and security resilience, have been discussed quite often, he said.

According to Bahtiar, the sociocultural aspect highly influences the development of national politics and economy, thus it is important to discuss the aspect, especially ahead of the general elections, which are scheduled to be implemented on February 14, 2024.

"Hence, the social aspect must be discussed from upstream as well as downstream (perspective).The handling of social issues should be more measurable and focused,” he added.

The meeting was inaugurated by Home Affairs Minister Tito Karnavian. He appealed to all regional governments to always help maintain harmony and diversity among the community to prevent conflict, which can harm national unity.

Southeast Sulawesi Governor Ali Mazi thanked the Home Affairs Ministry for selecting Kendari City as the host of the national coordination meeting, saying the event could stoke the region’s economy.

"Moreover, we (as a host have to) welcome guests from (various institutions and local governments) throughout Indonesia. Let's receive these guests with a smile and provide the best hospitality to support (our) economic growth," he remarked.

The governor said that the ministry chose Kendari city as the location for the event because the region always creates a safe, conducive, and harmonious situation.

"Let's maintain harmonious relations among us," he remarked. (Antaranews)