MSME Digital Acceleration, Real Evidence of Prabowo-Gibran’s 100-Day Commitment
By: Dirandra Falguni )*
The Indonesian government under the leadership of President Prabowo-Gibran continues to demonstrate its strong commitment to protecting the community through progressive economic policies, especially in efforts to encourage digitalization in the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) sector. This is reflected in various incentive programs and cross-sector collaborations aimed at accelerating digital transformation, increasing competitiveness, and opening up new economic opportunities, especially during the 100 days of his leadership.
The Minister of Communication and Digital (Menkomdigi), Meutya Hafid, recently reviewed the implementation of digitalization among MSME actors while visiting the Old Market in Tangerang City. During her visit, Meutya appreciated the high adoption of digital payment systems such as QRIS (Quick Response Code Indonesian Standard) by traders.
According to Meutya, the adoption of technology such as QRIS can increase traders’ turnover by 50-60 percent. One of the traders met by Menkomdigi revealed that most of their transactions are now done digitally, proving that digitalization has become the new backbone of MSME business operations.
In addition to QRIS, the government is also encouraging MSMEs to utilize artificial intelligence (AI) technology. According to Menkomdigi, AI is a revolutionary tool that can increase business efficiency, from logo creation to market analysis.
In a discussion entitled “MSMEs Click and Grow: Empowered to Transform with AI,” Meutya emphasized that the use of AI is no longer an option, but a necessity. Other countries that have adopted AI have proven to be able to produce goods at a lower cost and efficiently. This is a challenge for Indonesian MSMEs to keep up with the flow of global transformation.
Through digitalization, we are targeting economic growth of up to 8 percent, as mandated by the President. The latest data shows that only 38.7 percent of MSMEs in Indonesia have utilized digital technology. Therefore, various digital trainings are now being intensively carried out, involving platforms such as Shopee and TikTok to strengthen the digital skills of MSME actors.
Not only the government, the private sector also plays an active role in supporting the digital transformation of MSMEs. PT Jalin Pembayaran Nusantara (Jalin), a subsidiary of Holding BUMN Danareksa, is collaborating with Mitra Bukalapak to present digital payment solutions.
Jalin Commercial Director, Eko Dedi Rukminto, stated that digital transformation through a strong ecosystem can increase the efficiency and competitiveness of MSMEs. Until November 2024, QRIS has recorded 689.07 million transactions with 55.02 million users and 35.1 million merchants. This figure reflects the great potential of MSME digitalization to support equitable financial inclusion.
In the annual SPEKTA 2024 (Special End of Year Gathering) event, Bukalapak together with Jalin focused on empowering stalls, traditional kiosks, and individual agents through the O2O (online to offline) business model. This event aims to provide education and increase the adoption of digital payments among MSME players.
In addition to digital payment solutions, strategic partnerships have also been established in the business software sector. Accurate, a provider of business and accounting software, has collaborated with Japanese SaaS company, RAKUS Co., Ltd., to strengthen the digitalization of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Indonesia.
The features offered by Accurate, such as sales management, stock management, and tax reporting, have helped more than 100,000 companies and 590,000 users in various sectors. This collaboration is real proof that digitalization is the key for SMEs to survive and thrive in the modern era.
SMEs play a vital role in the national economy, contributing more than 60 percent to gross domestic product (GDP) and absorbing 97 percent of the workforce in Indonesia. However, the challenge of digital transformation is still a big homework.
Digital learning platform Belajarlagi in collaboration with Bank Indonesia is holding a digital marketing training program for 200 micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). This program is part of Bank Indonesia’s ongoing commitment to increasing the competitiveness, capacity, and digital literacy of MSMEs in various regions in Indonesia.
Head of BI Lampung Representative Office, Junanto Herdiawan, also expressed his appreciation to Belajarlagi which has encouraged MSMEs to continue learning and adopting the latest technologies such as AI and ChatGPT, helping MSMEs to be more competitive in the digital era. This program has a real impact in increasing the capacity of MSMEs so that they can be better prepared to compete globally.
