Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs Secretary Susiwijono remarked here on Saturday that the current momentum of economic growth and even distribution must be strengthened by creating economically independent communities.
"The simple mentality and mindset of the community to only fulfill personal needs must be changed to a mindset that prioritizes entrepreneurial spirit," Susiwijono remarked during the National Consultation on Economic Independence for Advanced Indonesia in Manado.
In order to bring about a change in the mindset, the government also implements various policies that encourage community independence. An increase in access to the People`s Business Credit (KUR) for the community is one such example.
Since January 2018, the annual KUR interest rates have been reduced to seven percent per year, from nine percent. In addition, the target of distribution is also prioritized to cover production sectors, such as agriculture, fisheries, forestry, and plantations.
"For instance, in the forestry sector, we also encourage economic independence through accelerating the process of managing and distributing social forestry permits faster and on target as part of the agrarian reforms, so that these assets can be used by the people as capital to create independent and productive economic resources," he noted.
Another example that has been implemented is through a simplification policy and the extension of the validity period of the Timber Legality Verification (SVLK) for MSMEs as well as providing subsidies for SVLK certification fees and surveillance costs.
In addition, the government continues its policy in the field of vocational education to create human resource capacity through well-standardized training and vocational training as outlined in the 2017-2025 vocational development policy road map in Indonesia.
An example is the pilot project of the first Coffee Vocational School curriculum in West Java. This education is expected to produce qualified human resources comprehensively, from upstream to downstream in terms of coffee, which is highly relevant to current trends across the world.
"Policies like this will be very beneficial both for the workforce to enter the business world and to become candidates for small- and medium-scale economic entrepreneurs," Susiwijono stated.
The government also continues to build infrastructure, both the National Strategic Project (PSN) and Non-PSN, to increase connectivity to reduce economic costs.
Quoting the president`s statement, he said the ease of licensing and adequate infrastructure is the key to take off towards a better future.
Reporting by By Citro Atmoko
Editing by Otniel Tamindael
Reporter: Antara
Editor: Suharto
Copyright © ANTARA 2018
