Government Continues to Encourage MSME Growth as a Concrete Step to Economic Equality
By: Cahyo Widjaya
The government continues to encourage the development of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) as part of the strategy to accelerate economic equality. One of the concrete steps taken is to strengthen cross-agency cooperation to ensure that MSMEs can develop and move up a class.
The Minister of Creative Economy and the Head of the Creative Economy Agency emphasized the importance of support from the Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM) for MSMEs. He considered that synergy between ministries and institutions is a major factor in increasing the competitiveness of MSMEs, especially in the food, traditional medicine, supplement, and cosmetics sectors. This cooperation is expected to help MSMEs meet higher standards so that they can compete in both domestic and international markets.
Currently, MSMEs continue to play a vital role as the backbone of the national economy. With a significant contribution to job creation and economic growth, MSMEs are a sector that receives great attention from the government. The Minister of Creative Economy, Teuku Riefky Harsya, emphasized the importance of regulatory support and easy access for small business actors so that they can develop and move up a class. Collaboration with BPOM, for example, aims to improve product quality and expand the market for MSMEs, especially in the traditional medicine, health supplements, and cosmetics sectors. This step is expected to be able to encourage the competitiveness of local products and accelerate economic equality.
As a follow-up, the Ministry of Creative Economy and BPOM formed a small team to draft a memorandum of understanding (MoU) which will be the basis for further cooperation. This MoU is not only administrative in nature, but also emphasizes innovation in improving the quality of human resources (HR) and intellectual property management. With this step, MSME products are expected to be able to gain recognition at the global level.
The government also continues to strive to improve MSME access to financing and assistance. The Ultra Micro Holding (UMi), consisting of BRI, PNM, and Pegadaian, has helped upgrade millions of customers from the ultra micro category to more established businesses. This success is in line with programs that focus on creating quality jobs, strengthening MSME entrepreneurship, as well as economic equality and poverty alleviation.
The Coordinating Minister for Community Empowerment appreciated the achievement and emphasized the importance of collaboration between the central government, regional governments, BUMN, and the private sector in creating a sustainable MSME empowerment ecosystem. He emphasized that the combination of the right financing and intensive assistance is the main key to success, allowing many small business actors to transform into more independent business entities.
In addition to upgrading customers, UMi Holding has also added millions of new debtors in recent years, with the total debtors continuing to increase. The synergy between BRI, Pegadaian, and PNM is the main factor in this achievement. With the strategic approach implemented, UMi Holding not only expands financial access for MSMEs but also encourages economic growth from the grassroots sector.
One of UMi Holding’s breakthroughs is strengthening financial service infrastructure through the Ultra Micro Service Center (SenyuM) network. With more than a thousand offices spread across various regions and the activation of work culture harmonization programs, financial services become more efficient and integrated. The use of digital technology is also a priority, with the integration of various digital platforms into one integrated application, SenyuM Mobile.
The integration of these services has accelerated formal financial access for small business owners throughout Indonesia. Thousands of marketers now use SenyuM Mobile to help MSMEs obtain financing and assistance more easily. With a combination of extensive physical and digital networks, Holding UMi not only increases financial inclusion but also creates great social value for the community.
The success of this strategy further strengthens Holding UMi’s role in supporting MSME-based economic transformation. The government sees this effort as a real step in achieving wider economic equality. With more and more MSMEs moving up a class, the impact will be felt by all levels of society, especially in job creation and increasing purchasing power.
Financial service agents also play an important role in expanding access for MSMEs in various regions. With thousands of work units and agents spread throughout Indonesia, financial services are now more easily accessible to people in remote areas. The business model that combines conventional, hybrid, and digital networks has provided a solution for many small business owners who previously had difficulty accessing business capital.
