Indonesia-UNCTAD Collaboration Encourages A Resilient And Sustainable Digital Economy Ecosystem

JAKARTA - Indonesian Deputy Foreign Minister Arrmanatha Christiawan Nasir met and UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Secretary General Rebeca Grynspan launched an e-tradition report on Indonesia's Readiness Assessment, the results of the Indonesia-UNCTAD collaboration to identify the strengthening of Indonesia's digital economy ecosystem, on the sidelines of the 16th UNCTAD Ministerial Conference, in Geneva, Switzerland.

This initiative reflects the use of multilateral cooperation through the UNCTAD forum to encourage the development of an inclusive, resilient, and sustainable digital system.

As one of the panelists in the "Ministerial Roundtable on Digital Economy", Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Tata emphasized the importance of building a digital economy ecosystem.

"As an archipelagic country, Indonesia pays great attention to the importance of connectivity as an opportunity to encourage development. For Indonesia, connectivity is not merely about connecting islands, but rather connecting people with better education, markets and futures," said Deputy Foreign Minister Tata, launching a statement from the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Thursday, October 23.

Furthermore, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Tata also explained various strategies and programs for Indonesia's priority in accelerating national digital transformation, including the Palapa Ring Project and Digital Talent Scholarship and the Digital Leadership Academy, to encourage digital inclusion and literacy.

In addition to strengthening infrastructure, Deputy Foreign Minister Tata also highlighted the importance of empowering MSMEs, digital governance, and supporting inclusive digital innovation, including investing in artificial intelligence (AI), green data centers, and an inclusive fintech ecosystem.

The Ministerial Roundtable on Digital Economy session was opened by the Secretary General of UNCTAD and also presented the Minister of Trade of Saudi Arabia, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Costa Rica, and the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Portugal.

On the sidelines of the 16th UNCTAD KTM series, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs also held a number of bilateral meetings, including the Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Daren Tang, Permanent Secretary of State Finland Jukka Salovaara, to the Brazilian Secretary of Economic and Financial Affairs Philip Fox-Drummond Gough.

In a bilateral meeting with Brazil and WIPO, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Tata emphasized the importance of multilateral system reforms, including WTOs.

With WIPO, Indonesia's initiatives are also discussed regarding strengthening global royalty governance in the digital era, including transparency, accountability, and global development databases to strengthen the performance of collective management institutions (LMK) in Global South.

Meanwhile, Finland praised Indonesia's great steps in the Free Nutrition Food (MBG) program to improve nutrition and education levels, as well as drive the local economy.

"Through the UNCTAD forum, Indonesia will continue to advance economic diplomacy that is oriented towards inclusive development, fair trade, and sustainable innovation," concluded Deputy Foreign Minister Tata.