Collaboration between the business world and the government is important to ensure MSMEs have wider market access through digitalisation

The Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) together with Kadin DI Yogyakarta, and the Indonesian Internet Domain Name Manager (PANDI) held the 'UMKM Go Digital' activity at Jogja Expo Center, DIY. This activity aims to accelerate the digitalisation of Indonesian MSMEs so that they can upgrade and become globally competitive as one of the strategies of the Prosperity pillar in the Indonesia Gold 2045 Roadmap prepared by Kadin Indonesia. Present at this event were 240 MSME units that were assisted by the DIY Provincial Cooperative Office and BPD DIY Bank. These MSMEs will be given a free '.biz.id' website domain and digital marketing training.

In this collaboration, the Indonesian Internet Domain Name Manager (PANDI) also launched the Digital Literacy Campaign, and offered a free '.biz.id' website domain for one year to MSME members of Kadin Indonesia. In addition, MSMEs will also receive training in the use of the '.biz.id' domain and digital marketing, organised by PANDI and Kadin DIY Province. This initiative is expected to strengthen the capacity of MSMEs in Yogyakarta to face challenges and capitalise on opportunities in the digital era.

Representing the local government, the Head of the DIY Provincial Communication and Information Agency, Hari Edi Tri Wahyu Nugroho, appreciated the collaboration between Kadin Indonesia, PANDI, and the provincial government. "We hope this collaboration can be carried out sustainably in the future in Yogyakarta, especially in helping MSMEs that have been one of the backbones of the Yogyakarta economy to continue to increase their business capacity," he said.

Vice Chairman of Kadin Indonesia for Communication and Information, Firlie Hanggodo Ganinduto, revealed that the number of MSMEs that have been connected to the digital ecosystem in Indonesia continues to increase from year to year. "The number of MSMEs that have gone digital in 2022 is recorded at 19 million business units, and by 2023 it will increase to 22.8 million. This needs to be encouraged and is expected to reach the target of 30 million MSMEs by 2024. For this reason, Kadin Indonesia collaborates with Kadin Provinsi DIY, Dinas Koperasi Provinsi DIY, and PANDI to encourage the achievement of the digitalisation target so that national MSMEs can be globally competitive through open access to digital markets," said Firlie.

PANDI Chairman, John Sihar Simanjuntak, emphasised PANDI's commitment to collaborate with Kadin Indonesia in improving the quality and quantity of MSMEs to drive national economic growth. "PANDI is ready to collaborate with Kadin Indonesia and the local government, in this case Yogyakarta, to support MSME players by providing training," he said.

PANDI also provided digital ID cards called 'taptap' for MSMEs who participated in the event. "With the digital idcard that also functions as a business card, it can provide convenience in getting acquainted and exchanging information in the digital era, the contents of the idcard can be customised such as website addresses, social media, marketplaces and so on," added John.

Robby Kusumaharta, Deputy Chairman for Organisation and Membership of Kadin Yogyakarta Province, said that this collaboration will provide greater potential for economic growth in Yogyakarta Province and will be ready to support this growth through training and mentoring for MSMEs in Yogyakarta.

"There are around 345,000 MSME units recorded in Yogyakarta and through this event, 1,000 MSMEs have joined Kadin DIY Province. We will continue to attract all MSMEs to join Kadin DIY Province and utilise the existing potential, one of which is through digital marketing training to have an economic impact in Yogyakarta," he said.

Based on the records of the Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs, there are 65 million MSMEs registered in 2021. Of these, micro businesses still dominate with 63.9 million units. With such a large number, the contribution of MSMEs to Indonesia's national GDP reaches 61%. In addition, MSMEs also contribute to job creation. At least, MSMEs absorb 120 million people or 97% of the total number of workers in Indonesia.