"We hope the textile industry continues to give good performance, mostly driven by the rapid growth of sales through e-commerce platforms as well as consumer awareness of the sustainability principle in the textile production process, in line with the commitment to reduce carbon and water consumption in the production process," Kartasasmita informed in a statement received here on Saturday.
On the commodity side, the principle of sustainability is also being encouraged through the use of environmentally friendly raw materials and the application of the circular economy principle, he added.
"The existence of Making Indonesia 4.0 will encourage the transformation of the textile industry to make it more competitive and innovate in an effort to compete and answer global market demands," the minister said.
To accelerate the implementation of Industry 4.0, the textile industry is expected to utilize several key technologies to beat global competition, including artificial intelligence, novel fabrics, Internet of Things (IoT), Rapid Data Analysis for Quick Adaptation, mobile commerce, virtual and augmented reality (VR), online vector editors, 3D printing, blockchain technology, and sustainable practices.
In addition, the Industry Ministry has initiated a strategic step in the form of a 35-percent import substitution program in 2022 to encourage the increased utilization of existing industries, as well as boost investment, including new and expansion investments, in Indonesia.
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The Ministry of Industry is also carrying out a machine and equipment restructuring program in the fabric refinement and fabric printing industries, in accordance with the Regulation of the Minister of Industry Number 18 of 2021.
"This effort has been proven to increase production capacity by 21.75 percent, increase production realization by 21.22 percent, energy efficiency by 11.86 percent, and increase sales volume, both domestically and (via) export, by 6.65 percent," Kartasasmita disclosed.
He also lauded the international integrated Textile and Textile Products (TPT) Industry Exhibition, or 2022 Indo Intertex & Inatex exhibition, which was themed “Making Indonesia Textile 4.0.”
The activity was meant to be a step to benchmark the latest technology and accelerate technological improvement in the textile industry in order to improve competitiveness in textile production.
"The acceleration of the technology application aims to speed up production. It also needs to be supported by industry-friendly investment funding from banks and other financial institutions," the minister said.
Therefore, he said he was open to the possibility of building an integrated textile industry ecosystem in Indonesia.
"We believe that with a shared commitment to empower the textile ecosystem, the competitiveness of the textile industry will be better and our shared goal of realizing Indonesia as the world's top five textile players can be realized," he explained.
In addition, viscose-rayon fiber producer Asia Pacific Rayon (APR) confirmed its commitment to supporting sustainable textile innovation in Indonesia by participating in the 2022 Indo Intertex & Inatex.
"APR's participation in this exhibition is a form of our commitment to develop a sustainable textile industry in Indonesia and support economic recovery in the textile sector, which is the focus of the government after this pandemic," APR director Basrie Kamba said.
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Translator: Sella Panduarsa G, Resinta S
Editor: Suharto
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