“Productivity is a major challenge for us right now. In the last ten years, our productivity growth has only been 25 percent, while China has reached 220 percent,” he noted in an official statement released in Jakarta on Saturday.
The minister revealed that Indonesia’s productivity level remains 10 percent, below the average of Southeast Asian countries. In fact, Indonesia’s Total Factor Productivity has recorded a decline.
“This means our ability to produce products, services, and offering effectively and efficiently is still lagging behind other countries. We need to catch up,” he said.
Yassierli added that President Prabowo Subianto has directed that the government’s priority programs must focus on job creation and increasing national productivity.
The Ministry of Manpower has also taken on the role of ensuring the successful implementation of these initiatives.
“We want to revive the spirit of productivity that was once a national movement in the 1970s. At that time, productivity was a main focus through the National Productivity Agency,” he said.
“However, this term gradually faded, replaced by other terms like innovation, performance, and governance. Even though the essence remains the same,” he added.
The minister further pointed out that the term productivity has often been often misinterpreted as efficiency, which leads to employee reduction.
“In fact, the essence of productivity is our ability to increase greater output. High productivity will have a direct impact on economic growth and improved public welfare,” he said.
He also encouraged all business players, including medium-sized companies, to make prompt efforts to improve and adapt to technological developments and the challenges of free trade.
In his view, productivity must also be applied in the public sector, including government and education. Therefore, he said he believes that a shift in mindset and work culture are the fundamental foundation that must be built.
“Productivity is not just about using advanced technology. More importantly, it’s about building a productive mindset and work culture. The Ministry of Manpower is ready to take the lead in the national productivity movement,” Yassierli added.
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Translator: Kuntum Khaira Riswan
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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