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State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) Minister Erick Thohir (middle) after the press conference regarding three SOEs disbanding in Jakarta. (ANTARA PHOTO/Dhemas Reviyanto/pras/rst) - 

State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) Minister Erick Thohir on Friday called to abandon the mindset that SOEs will definitely be saved by the government.

"The mindset that all SOEs will be saved by the government must be abandoned," Thohir said as quoted from his official Twitter account @erickthohir here on  Friday.

Thohir emphasized that all SOEs that stopped operating for a long time and did not contribute to society should be disbanded.

"From the onset, I have emphasized that non-operating SOEs, with no contribution to the community, must be disbanded," he remarked.

Earlier, Thohir had announced the dismissal of three SOEs -- Aceh Kraft Paper, PT IGLAS, and Nusantara Clothing Industry -- which was carried out with the rights of the employees.

The effective dismissal of the three SOEs awaits the issuance of a government regulation in June 2022, he stated.

These three SOEs were dismissed since they had not operated since long. Aceh Kraft Paper had not operated since 2008, PT Iglas was non-operational since 2015, and the Nusantara Clothing Industry has not functioned since 2018.

Thohir will also review the performance of four SOEs that would also be disbanded.

The minister said he would disband SOEs that have not operated for a long time with no certainty for employees. This condition was not healthy for the business operator and the country as well.

In addition, if these SOEs were not capable of becoming a cluster or part of a consolidated business model, the ministry would likely disband that type of SOE.

In addition to Aceh Kraft Paper, Nusantara Clothing Industry, and PT IGLAS that were disbanded, four other SOEs under the Danareksa-PPA Holding -- Merpati Nusantara Airlines, Istaka Karya, PT Kertas Leces, and PT Financing Armada Niaga Nasional (PANN) -- will be dissolved by the ministry//ANT

Screenshot of Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto during the DEWG Kick Off in an official statement, Wednesday (16/3/2022). (Public Relations of the Coordinating Ministry of Economic Affairs) - 

Indonesia has the highest digital economic valuation in ASEAN, at US$70 billion, or 40 percent of ASEAN's digital economy, and projected to increase to $146 billion in 2025, Coordinating Economic Affairs Minister Airlangga Hartarto stated.

"We must take advantage of the great potential of Indonesia's digital economy to improve mutual prosperity," Hartarto noted in an official statement, Friday.

In terms of digital talent in the future, some nine million digital Human Resources (HR) will be required in Indonesia by 2030, which will be met by today's young generation and will accelerate the growth of entrepreneurs in Indonesia.

With digitalization, the targeted economic growth in 2022 of 5.2 percent year-on-year can be achieved.

"To achieve this, the strategy for dealing with the pandemic by strengthening the 3T process, treatment or therapy, health protocols, and vaccinations will remain the main priority in addition to the economic recovery strategy," he remarked.

In the long term, Indonesia is keen to escape the middle-income trap, so it needs to create more jobs by increasing the number of entrepreneurs.

Currently, the ratio of the number of Indonesian entrepreneurs is still low, at around 3.47 percent of the total population, so the development of MSMEs should be further supported.

Efforts to help these MSME actors survive in the midst of a pandemic must also be conducted, the minister noted.

"The Job Creation Law will help create job opportunities, as this regulation will increase the ease of doing business to improve investment and productivity through a new paradigm, specifically risk-based licensing that is simpler, faster, and integrated," Coordinating Minister Hartarto remarked.

Digital transformation that is evenly distributed across all Indonesian regions is key for growth of the national digital economy, Secretary-General of the Ministry of Communication and Informatics Mira Tayyiba earlier stated.

"Digital transformation and its utilization must be spread evenly and not only be concentrated in metropolitan cities. Tier 2 and 3 cities have great opportunities in the next decade," she remarked.

According to Tayyiba, Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities account for 46 percent of Indonesia's total gross domestic product (GDP), and their contribution is estimated to increase to 49-51 percent by 2030.

"This means the percentage of these cities' contribution will cover up to half of Indonesia's GDP," she remarked.

Furthermore, the secretary-general noted that the COVID-19 pandemic had activated digital adoption in non-metropolitan areas. Some 72 percent of the 21 million new digital consumers in 2021 came from non-metropolitan areas, she noted.

The digital economy in these cities is expected to grow up to five folds between 2020 and 2025, with their projected contribution to the national digital economy reaching more than 40 percent; with the highest contribution made by e-commerce, health tech, lending, edutech, payment, and ride and delivery sectors, she noted//ANT

Presentation given by Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Minister Bintang Puspayoga during the CSW 66 Side Event webinar themed "Energy Transition and Rural Women: Experiences from the Republic of Indonesia and Global Partners" on Thursday (March 17, 2022). ANTARA/Anita Permata Dewi - 

Women's Empowerment and Child Protection Minister Bintang Puspayoga accentuated the importance of access to electricity to develop micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Indonesia.

"When we talk about economic empowerment, access to electricity is very important for running a business, for business success," the minister noted at the sixty-sixth session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW 66) Side Event webinar themed "Energy Transition and Rural Women: Experiences from the Republic of Indonesia and Global Partners," which was accessed here on Thursday.

Puspayoga noted that MSMEs contributed 61 percent to Indonesia's gross domestic product (GDP).

In addition, the minister remarked that MSMEs owned by women also support job creation and reduce poverty in the country.

"Our statistics show that among women, who own MSMEs in our country, usually their business units are very supportive of job creation and also poverty reduction," she stated.

However, several people in rural areas in the country still have limited access to energy, she stated. Hence, those people are still using firewood and kerosene as their energy sources, she pointed out.

Puspayoga highlighted that the use of conventional energy sources could trigger various negative effects.

"According to the WHO, about four million people (each year) die prematurely because of air pollution that occurs at the household level," she remarked.

Puspayoga stressed that women should be given access to clean and renewable energy, so that they can create positive impacts.

"Ensuring that women have access to renewable and clean energy will create a positive trickle effect, will increase economic empowerment, and also improve health in families and support children to become more educated," she remarked//ANT

Photo archive of Head of the State Intelligent Agency (BIN) General Police (Ret.) Budi Gunawan. (ANTARA PHOTO/Hafidz Mubarak A/foc/aa/rst) - 

Relocation and construction of the new capital city (IKN) Nusantara should optimize the existing resources in Indonesia, Head of the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) General  Budi Gunawan stated.

"This is a national strategic project with a historical decision to achieve the national goal. Hence, it must be able to maximize domestic resources," Gunawan noted in a written statement  here, Friday.

Gunawan remarked that Indonesia should be oriented towards endogenous growth rather than exogenous growth. The orientation of endogenous growth should be utilized in at least three aspects of IKN Nusantara's development.

In terms of capital, Indonesia should prioritize financing from national banks, which are actually abundant, he noted.

Gunawan remarked that in terms of the workforce, Indonesia also has human resources (HR), with extraordinary digital talents. Based on the start-up ranking data for 2021, Indonesia was in the top five in the world behind the United States, India, Britain, and Canada.

"Some people actually do not realize that Indonesia has potential and massive digital talent workforce," he stated.

Gunawan believes this holds huge potential for future generations, especially since Indonesia's digital talents are sensitive to the green economy, have flexible thinking, and are sustainable.

"They must become one of the backbones of IKN Nusantara's growth through creative industries, light manufacturing industries, and an environmentally friendly economy," he remarked.

The former deputy chief of the National Police also noted that Indonesia was capable of realizing IKN Nusantara as a smart forest city and a modern, inclusive, and civilized city.

Not only through the innovations of the Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing, but the best universities in Indonesia also have adequate capabilities and technology to develop IKN Nusantara.

"Our human resources and technology are very qualified. This could become an opportunity to promote them and will be an added value for IKN Nusantara," Gunawan concluded//ANT