The business credit program plays a significant role in encouraging Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) financing, as well as increasing the level of inclusive financial community, the minister said on Monday.
According to Nasution, the growth of SMEs has been able to sustain community income distribution, and strengthen the stability of the domestic economy, and it is expected that the negative impact of the global economic uncertainty will continue to threaten Indonesia in 2016.
"The peoples business credit will be a great program, and will involve strategic coordination between the Bank of Indonesia and the Financial Services Authority," he said.
Earlier, the government had cut lending from 22 percent to 12 percent. In 2016, the government plans to maintain lending at only 9 percent.
The rate cut by the government was announced, along with an increase in subsidies to the creditor banks. The government also raised the subsidy budget for peoples business credit in 2015 from Rp400 billion to Rp1 trillion.
Nasution said the micro credit program in 2016 will be discussed with the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Transportation, Ministry of Agricultural, Bank of Indonesia, and the Financial Services Authority.
The business credit will also be included in the national program to encourage inclusive finance.
With inclusive finance, the government can reduce the flow of foreign funds in the domestic financial market.
Nasution also pointed out that dependency on foreign funds had made Indonesia vulnerable to the global economic crisis.
The other priority programs are developing a conducive macro-economic policy, fiscal and monetary policies, strengthening the financial system, controlling the payment of foreign debt, and inflation control.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2015
