Indonesia's G20 Presidency will support women's empowerment, especially in the fields of digital literacy and micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), as well as ultra micro-enterprise, the Ministry of Communication and Informatics has said.

As chair of the G20, Indonesia has held the G20 Women's Empowerment Kickoff Meeting initiated by Women20 and G20 Empower, according to a press statement issued by the ministry on Thursday.

At the meeting, Indonesia G20 Presidency's Empower Working Group and the W20 Engagement Group brought up the priority issue of support for MSMEs and building digital skills among women.

The Empower Working Group voiced support for women's equality under the second priority issue, namely "women in SMEs as drivers of economic growth: context, connect, and change", and third priority issue “building a future-ready economy by increasing the involvement of women in the economy and workforce through upskilling and digital enablement”, it added.

Meanwhile, the W20 emphasized economic inclusivity through support for women in the second priority issue: “achieving economic inclusion by supporting MSMEs owned and managed by women”.

The Ministry of Communication and Informatics said it will ensure the functioning of the Digital Economy Working Group (DEWG) and that the digital transformation envisaged by the working group and the engagement group takes place smoothly.

The ministry further said it welcomes and encourages mainstreaming of women in digital economic activities, bolstering inclusivity, and empowering digital capability—issues that have been brought up by the W20 and Empower Working Group.

The ministry informed that it is also striving for more inclusive participation of vulnerable groups within the digital capability program through DEWG's second priority issue that pushes increasing digital skills and digital literacy.

The document will be a reference point for G20 to encourage digital participation among vulnerable groups and to realize, in a collective effort, a digital economy that would include every element of society, the ministry said.

In addition, the document is expected to identify and provide concrete recommendations on the digital gap experienced by vulnerable groups, it added.

Examples of such vulnerable groups include women and children, indigenous communities, digital migrants, and MSMEs affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the ministry said.

The ministry further said it has provided digital training this year to more than 12.5 million people, 52 percent of whom were women.

The ministry informed that it has also launched the Digital Entrepreneurship Academy, whose participants include housewives, to develop digital-based MSMEs. (Antaranews)

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has said his government will continue to build infrastructure, both small and large scale, considering that infrastructure is the foundation and fundamental to improving Indonesia's economic competitiveness.

"I am still going to continue this program," he stated at the 7th anniversary of the Indonesia Solidarity Party (PSI) on Wednesday.

Many parties have questioned the government's policy of building a lot of infrastructures, such as the construction of toll roads, ports, and airports, he noted.

"Many of them ask the purpose of this program. They say that people do not eat asphalt. But once again I emphasize, we want to compete with other countries," he remarked.

Indonesia must be able to compete with other countries by increasing economic growth, encouraging competitiveness, and creating many job opportunities, President Jokowi said.

With this aspiration, infrastructure is the foundation and a fundamental requirement for increasing competitiveness, he explained.

"Because for me road infrastructure means welfare. If there is no road, there will be no infrastructure and no products," he remarked.

He said the impact of infrastructure development will not be seen in the short term. However, with the presence of infrastructure, Indonesia already has the foundation to compete with other countries in order to improve people's welfare, he added.

Furthermore, the Head of State emphasized that the government should not only build large-scale infrastructure, but also pay attention to small-scale and rural infrastructure.

In the last five years, fund transfers to villages reached Rp 400.1 trillion, he noted. In addition, the government has also built 227 thousand kilometers of village roads during the same period, he informed.

"We also pay attention to small infrastructure such as village roads. Until today, we have transferred Rp 400.1 trillion to villages in the last five years to build village roads, reservoirs, irrigation, bridges, public markets, and village-owned enterprises or BUM Desa," he added.  (antaranews)

 Mother's Day commemoration is not just a moment for expressing gratitude, but also an opportunity to highlight and acknowledge the important role women play in the nation's development, First Lady Iriana Joko Widodo has said.

"This special momentum should enliven women's spirit to speak out and show their potential, to empower themselves to develop equality and prosperous life, and become more innovative for the advancement of the nation," she remarked in a statement issued here on Wednesday.

Joining a virtual event on the eve of the 93rd Mother's Day from Yogyakarta on Wednesday, the first lady said that women are important pillars and drivers of the nation's development.

This has been proven through the role women have played throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, she added.

"Throughout the pandemic, women, mothers, have proven their resiliency and power to survive from various difficulties to protect their children, families, and the people around them to keep them happy, calm, and productive," she explained.

She also urged women to continue to fight and become empowered to aid the advancement of Indonesia.

"Indonesian women should become empowered women, trendsetters in the formation of the nation's character, and prepare a strong and resilient future generation," she affirmed.

She also conveyed her belief that with their resiliency and the strategic roles that they play, women and mothers could become more empowered and help realize Advanced Indonesia.

Earlier, Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Minister Bintang Puspayoga had highlighted women's role in saving the nation.

For instance, during the economic crisis of 1998, women-owned micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) helped keep Indonesia's economy stable, she pointed out.  (Antaranews)

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has outlined three main conditions that must be met to bolster the empowerment of Indonesian women.

The three conditions are the equalization of digital infrastructure, digital literacy, and entrepreneurial skills training for women in remote regions of the country, he said.

He made the statement while opening the G20 Women's Empowerment Kick-Off Meeting, according to a press release issued by the Ministry of Communication and Informatics here on Wednesday.

The equalization of digital infrastructure is required because it can support women in many productive activities, Jokowi said. One way is to make it easier for women in the digital industry to access financial services, he added.

According to the President, the development of the digital economy may turn out to be more massive, entering every aspect of people's lives in the future. Hence, he said, the government must accelerate the growth of the digital economy.

"Digital infrastructure correlation is one of the conditions that can ease women's access to financial services in the digital economy," he explained.

Second, by encouraging Indonesian women to master digital literacy, each of them can use and benefit from digital technology by being productive, President Jokowi said.

Third, Indonesia should improve and increase women's training and development so that Indonesian women can upgrade their qualities and skills, such as entrepreneurial abilities, he added.

He said the three conditions are important because they will have an impact on the progress of women in Indonesia in their efforts to become more independent. Thus, Indonesia can have a positive influence on women's empowerment in the Asian continent in the future, he added.

"(This could be realized by) Adding more entrepreneurship training and workshops for women in Asia for the advancement of their protection and empowerment," he remarked.  (Antaranews)