Revealed, This Is Prabowo's Effort To Save Textile Industry From The Threat Of Layoffs

JAKARTA - The government is paying serious attention to the development of the textile industry and textile products (TPT). Moreover, the condition of the national TPT industry is currently overshadowed by waves of layoffs (PHK) due to the flood of cheap imported goods.

The government's seriousness is as stated in Presidential Regulation (Perpres) Number 79 of 2025 concerning the Update of the 2025 Government Work Plan which was promulgated on June 30, 2025.

"The development of the textile industry and textile products is carried out as an effort to realize the increase in added value, productivity and competitiveness of the TPT industry," the regulation reads, quoted on Saturday, September 20.

In the regulation, it is stated that there are 10 efforts that will be made to realize increased added value, productivity and competitiveness of the TPT industry.

First, strengthening supply chains. While the second is strengthening human resources and conducive employment policies.

Third, providing reliable and competitive clean and renewable energy. Fourth, namely technology adoption 4.0 and low-emission technology.

Fifth, optimizing research and innovation. Sixth, increasing access to financial institutions.

Seventh, namely the development of sustainable textiles and textiles of local culture. Eighth, strengthening branding of textile products and increasing exports.

Ninth, increasing market share in e-commerce and utilizing the procurement of goods/services, and the tenth or last is the policy of trading imports and eradicating illegal imports.

"The growth of gross domestic product in the textile and clothing industry is 3.50 percent, the productivity of the TPT industry workforce to Rp60.34 million per person/year and the absorption of TPT industrial workers is 3,918,787 people," explained the regulation.

Previously, the Textile Institute of Technology's Alumni Association of Textile High Schools of Textile Technology (IKA Textile) voiced its concerns regarding the trend of termination of employment (PHK) and the closure of factories in the national textile and textile product (TPT) industry.

Chairman of IKA Tekstil Riady Madyadinata said that the layoffs this time did not only happen to workers at the operator level, but also experts to middle management.

"Our employees who are professionals are also affected. We are currently analyzing the root of the factory closure problem through input from regional coordinators in DKI, Banten, West Java, Central Java to East Java," said Riady in an official statement received by VOI, Friday, September 19.

According to Riady, the main problem lies in the difficulty of selling domestic products due to the flood of imported goods, both legal and illegal. Local product prices are considered difficult to compete because production costs in Indonesia are around 35-40 percent higher than imported goods.

IKA Textile also noted a number of other factors that suppress industrial competitiveness, such as energy costs, human resources, logistics to work culture within the company. Ironically, many alumni actually have careers abroad because the TPT industry in other countries is developing.

Riady added that the entry of foreign investment, especially from China, has not been able to withstand the rate of layoffs and the closure of domestic factories.

On the other hand, Chairman of the Working Convection Entrepreneurs Association (IPKB) Nandi Herdiman asked the Ministry of Industry (Kemenperin) to be transparent in announcing the company receiving the import quota and its amount.

"If it is not transparent, the same incident as in the yarn and cloth sector will be repeated. BPS data shows that the import of yarn and cloth has continued to rise in the last five years, while domestic producers have actually gone out of business," he said.