We realize that this major work cannot be done by us alone
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Ministry of Village, Development of Disadvantaged Regions and Transmigration is cooperating with a private enterprise in order to expand the exports of village products.

"It is time for developing the village-scale local economy to become export-oriented," Minister of Village, Development of Disadvantaged Regions and Transmigration Abdul Halim Iskandar noted through a statement on Tuesday.

According to Iskandar, villages in Indonesia have a major opportunity to ship their local commodities to become export products.

Several export-worthy village-scale local products include furniture, craft, fashion, agrobusiness, as well as food and beverage items, he stated.

"With proper management, these variety of prime commodities are very worthy of becoming export products," Iskandar noted during the DSA Export and Awarding Kampung Berseri Astra and Desa Sejahtera innovation kick-off.

He lauded third parties keen to cooperate to develop the potential of village-scale economy.

The involvement of third parties, including PT Astra International TBK that the ministry cooperated with for this endeavor, are immensely helpful in expediting the improvement of villagers' prosperity.

"We realize that this major work cannot be done by us alone. It necessitates the involvement of many parties in the business world, universities, and creative communities that exist in society," the minister remarked.

He expects that the programs to improve the capacity of human resources and village economy independence by Astra can become the parameters for all parties in implementing other village human resources assistance programs.

These programs can come in the form of product quality control, family finance management, and business groups assistance.

During the period from 2019 to 2021, some 133 Kampung Berseri Astra (KBA) and 930 Desa Sejahtera Astra (DSA) in 34 provinces were assisted through PT Astra International's social responsibility program.

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Translator: Zubi Mahrofi, Fadhli Ruhman
Editor: Sri Haryati
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