Tangerang, Banten (ANTARA) - Minister of Communication and Informatics, Budi Arie Setiadi, said on Tuesday that during the last year of his leadership, his ministry has made several major achievements in digital transformation.

He noted that the first accomplishment was the development of base transceiver stations (BTS).

"By the end of last year, we completed around 5,000 BTS installations that had previously stalled," Setiadi said.

The BTS inauguration at the end of 2023 was conducted directly by President Joko Widodo, coinciding with the launch of the Republic of Indonesia-1 Satellite (SATRIA-1).

These digital infrastructures were built as part of efforts to ensure equitable connectivity, which serves as one of the foundations for national digital transformation, as outlined in the 2021–2024 Digital Indonesia Road Map.

According to Setiadi, another significant achievement in Indonesia's digital transformation has been the handling of online gambling.

He emphasized that the progress in combating online gambling has been substantial, helping to reduce its prevalence by nearly 50 percent.

"We are not yet fully satisfied with eradicating online gambling. Therefore, we continue to enhance our measures," he added.

Data from the Ministry of Communication and Informatics shows that, as of September 11, the ministry has blocked access to 3,277,834 instances of online gambling content.

Additionally, the ministry requested the closure of 573 e-wallet accounts and 7,499 bank accounts affiliated with online gambling, in collaboration with Bank Indonesia and the Financial Services Authority.

Setiadi noted that these preventive actions contributed to the decline in online gambling, as evidenced by findings from the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) in July.

The PPATK reported a drop in online gambling deposits to Rp34.49 trillion (approximately US$2.24 billion).

Setiadi stated that in the final months of his term, he will focus on strengthening and building the digital ecosystem.

As part of the effort to enhance the digital ecosystem, the ministry has developed several regulations to support the growth of information and communication technology, including a circular on artificial intelligence ethics.

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Translator: Livia Kristianti, Raka Adji
Editor: Anton Santoso
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