Around 56 percent of the total revenue of our e-commerce market is dominated by foreign (products).
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Minister Teten Masduki has asked Indonesian influencers to promote local products so that they can compete with foreign products on e-commerce platforms.

“Around 56 percent of the total revenue of our e-commerce market is dominated by foreign (products). To this end, we need the role of many parties, including influencers, in promoting local products,” he said in an official statement released here on Wednesday.

According to Masduki, amid the shift in shopping behavior from offline to online and the invasion of foreign products, the role of influencers in promoting local products is becoming more significant.

He said that it is necessary to build a love of local products to help locally-made products compete with foreign ones.

This could help micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to develop and grow continuously, he added.

He expressed the hope that the Indonesian people will follow the example of the Japanese who believe that buying local products is one way to help their country grow.

Currently, based on research conducted by the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (INDEF), almost 90 percent of the 400 e-commerce companies in Indonesia are dominated by imported products. Meanwhile, the circulation of money in Indonesia’s e-commerce market is projected to reach Rp300 trillion (around US$19.52 billion).

According to Masduki, if the community is moved to consume local goods, MSME revenue will grow larger. In addition, it will allow the online commerce ecosystem to be built well.

“If MSMEs can utilize at least half (of the market) through local products, we can get a high economic value, around Rp150 trillion (around US$9.76 billion),” he said.

To capture the e-commerce market, which is dominated by imported products, he pushed for stricter regulations, such as the digital economy regulation whose implementation has become urgent.

This is because several MSMEs have complained they cannot compete with products from China that are sold at unreasonable prices.

“This is no longer dumping, but predatory pricing,” he said.

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Translator: Kuntum Khaira, Raka Adji
Editor: Sri Haryati
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