VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Screenshot—President Joko Widodo opens National Culture Week 2021 on Friday (November 19, 2021). (ANTARA/Indriani/aa) - 

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has said he wants to improve the country's balance of payment, which has remained under pressure for many years due to high oil imports.

To that end, the use of electric cars and stoves must be encouraged to reduce oil and gas needs, he said.

“If we are able to switch to other energy, for instance, replacing all cars with electric ones, and household gas with electricity due to PLN’s power oversupply, then Pertamina’s oil imports will decline,” the President said in directives to the boards of commissioners and directors of state electricity company PT PLN at the Presidential Palace in Bogor, West Java, on Tuesday, streamed on the Youtube channel of the Presidential Secretariat on Saturday.

By optimizing the use of electric power from PLN, the issue of electric power supply can be resolved and oil imports will decline accordingly, he explained.

If oil imports decline, this will have a positive impact on the country’s current account and balance of payment, he pointed out.

“The great goal is that the country will receive gain in the form of (surplus in) the balance of payment, which has remained unsolved for tens of years now because our oil imports are very large,” Jokowi noted.

The decline in oil imports will also enable state oil and gas company Pertamina to reduce its dollar needs in the money market, allowing the rupiah’s exchange rate to strengthen, he said.

If the rupiah’s exchange rate strengthens due to a steady decline in imports, the Indonesian economy will fundamentally become more resilient and competitive, he added.

President Jokowi also urged PLN to prepare for an energy transition from fossil fuel to environmentally friendly or green energy.

“This is urgent. It must set a target, for instance, for 2022, since (in 2021 there) is still one month left. For instance, to produce 5 thousand megawatts of electrical power in 2022, it can switch from coal to hydropower, geothermal energy, or solar panel,” he said.

The energy transition from fossil energy to green energy must be done by all sides, including PLN and Pertamina, he added.

"For the better interests, for our children and grandchildren, energy transition to green energy is inevitable,” he said//ANT

Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi (second from right) while reviewing the construction process of the New Mentawai Airport, in Mentawai Islands District, West Sumatra Province, Saturday (November 20, 2021). (The Ministry of Transportation) - 

Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi has targeted to complete the construction of the New Mentawai Airport in Mentawai Islands District, West Sumatra Province, in August 2022.

"The synergy among regional governments, the Indonesian Military (TNI), the National Police (Polri), and other related parties Insha Allah (God willing) could support the completion of the airport's (construction), set in August 2022, and we will invite President Joko Widodo to inaugurate it," the minister noted in his statement accessed here, Saturday.

Sumadi explained that the New Mentawai Airport will replace the Rokot Sipora Airport, which currently has a 850-meter-long runway and can only accommodate Grand Caravan aircraft. Hence, a new runway will be built to accommodate larger aircraft.

Sumadi affirmed that his ministry had readied a budget of Rp547 billion for construction of the New Mentawai Airport, whose work has currently reached 42-percent completion.

Sumadi spoke of having urged the Directorate General of Civil Aviation at the Ministry of Transportation and the contractor to accelerate the construction process by increasing the number of human resources and equipment as well as optimizing the working time.

New Mentawai Airport will later be equipped with several facilities, such as a longer runway of 1,500 x 30 meters as compared to only 850 meters of the previous runway and be equipped with an apron spanning 175 x 75 meters, a taxiway of 75 x 15 meters that can accommodate three ATR 72 500/600 type aircraft, and a passenger terminal spanning 1,600 square meters that can accommodate 53,881 passengers annually.

Apart from boosting inter-regional connectivity around the Mentawai Islands, the presence of the airport is expected to boost the tourism sector in the islands, which are known for the waves explored by several surfing sports fans worldwide.

On the same occasion, Deputy Governor of West Sumatra Audy Joinaldy expressed his optimism that the new airport would help revive the community's economy.

Joinaldy also voiced his support for the intermodal integration from the Minangkabau International Airport to Mentawai, connected either by train, ship, or aircraft//ANT

Governor of Jambi, Al Haris. (ANTARA/HO-Diskominfo Jambi/FR) - 

Governor Al Haris has said he expects the smart village program of the Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration Ministry in Jambi Province to aid the advancement of villages.

"I expect that after the smart village program is fully implemented, it will effect an advancement of villages by utilizing existing resources and producing innovative human resources through digitalization," he remarked here on Saturday in response to Jambi being selected for the program.

The smart village program is a part of the Government Strengthening and Village Development Program (P3PD).

According to the ministry's Competitiveness Development Center head, Helmiati, P3PD aims to improve rural institutional capacity and accountability through the unveiling of a new system based on technology.

"Bolstering village's capacity and accountability is expected to be able to improve the quality of village fund utilization, which would reduce poverty, unemployment, and improve the effectiveness of village development," she explained.

As part of P3PD, the ministry will focus on bolstering people's empowerment, social accountability, and local-based development solutions, Helmiati informed.

Smart Village is a development approach concept for encouraging villages to carry out a transformation through technology utilization, she said.

The goal of the program is to improve the quality of basic services and village development, based on inclusive and sustainable empowerment of the people, she added.

This can be done by improving the capability of human resources in utilizing technology effectively to drive the creation of innovative local developmental solutions, she said.

The program would also encourage the construction of smart village networks that involve various stakeholders sustainably to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), she added.

"The achievement of the SDGs on the national level is inseparable from the role on the micro-level, namely villages," Helmiati stressed.

"The number of villages that reached 74,961 became proof that the power of villages should be considered in its contribution toward Indonesia's advancement," she affirmed//ANT

Screenshot—Indonesian Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Kuwait, Lena Maryana Mukti, at a webinar entitled 'Meet the Diplomats' in Jakarta on Saturday (November 20, 2021). (ANTARA/Juwita Trisna Rahayu/KT) - 

Democracy without women's involvement reflects a 'democratic deficit', Indonesian Ambassador to Kuwait, Lena Maryana Mukti, has said.

"The terms of democracy is a balanced proportion of both genders in creating a democratic country. Thus, I refer to a democracy that does not include women as a 'democracy deficit'," Mukti remarked at a webinar entitled 'Meet the Diplomats' here on Saturday.

Women's participation in politics is important to produce more democratic policies, she said.

"The number of women in the world is more than men, but their (women's) political activity is still marginal. On average, it is only 15 percent throughout different countries in the world," she added.

Women make up 49.8 percent of the population, but their representation in the parliament is only 18 percent, Mukti noted.

Based on the United Nations Convention, the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women (CEDAW) was ratified and accepted by the UN General Assembly in 1979, she said. To date, more than 170 countries have ratified it, including Indonesia, she added.

Indonesia has passed Law No. 2 of 2008 concerning at least 30-percent representation of women in political parties, both in the establishment and management at the central level, Mukti said.

However, not all political parties can meet these requirements, she noted. Therefore, 30-percent women's involvement should be listed in the statute of political parties, she said.

"So, when the election happens, they do not randomly hire (political party members)," she remarked.

In addition, there is a need to improve political understanding among women so not only the quota is fulfilled, but also quality, she said.

In 2004-2009, before the women's involvement in political parties Bill was approved, only 68 women had a seat in the parliament, she recalled.

After the law was passed, women's representation immediately rose from 11 percent to 18 percent, and the momentum was followed by the regions through the Regional Legislative Assemblies (DPRDs), she pointed out.

However, according to her, the current conditions are inseparable from the challenges that still have to be faced, such as the issue of sexism that associates women with corruption and so on.

"It is cruel. Does a man who is convicted of corruption get a similar judgment?" she stressed.

The "dirty" stigma of the political world has also led to women avoiding joining the political world, she added//ANT