"Product digitalization is increasingly relevant and strategic to make the MSMEs able to survive and play a major role in helping (the country's ) economic recovery," Amin stated at the online commemoration of the 2021 National MSME Day on Thursday.
The digitalization of MSMEs must also be balanced with increasing the capacity of business human resources and supporting market access policies for domestic products, he affirmed.
The COVID-19 pandemic impacted the economic sector but also had positive effects on the development of MSMEs.
"The pandemic has indeed hit most MSME businesses. However, it also had positive impacts, including accelerating the digitization of MSMEs," he remarked.
Hence, Amin has invited the MSME community and related stakeholders to intensify their joint commitment to providing guidance and assistance to encourage productivity of MSMEs.
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"We are optimistic that MSMEs would be able to increase production capacity and product quality. Stakeholders are also expected to support easy financing facilities and collaboration with large businesses," he explained.
Meanwhile, Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Minister Teten Masduki noted that the number of MSMEs in the digital ecosystem was still at the novice level, with 22.7 percent, or equivalent to 14.6 million MSMEs.
Hence, Masduki is optimistic that various assistance programs from the government would improve the MSME ecosystem to further develop and encourage national economic growth.
"The government's efforts to tackle the pandemic are presented through several steps, such as providing 21 percent, or Rp161.2 trillion, from the national economic recovery (PEN) 2021 budget allocated to support MSMEs," Masduki remarked.
He is also sanguine that the commemoration of National MSME Day 2021 would be an opportunity to revive the efforts to transform the MSMEs for a brighter future.
"I hope we would be able to utilize this opportunity to prepare for the rise of Indonesian MSMEs to dominate and bounce back while adapting in the midst of a pandemic," he noted in a closing statement.
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Translator: Fransiska N, Resinta S
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
Copyright © ANTARA 2021
