The National Footwear Industry Will Be Able To Hold Amid The Threats Of Global Recession

Foot Alas Industry. Photo: Doc. Ministry of Industry

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Industry (Kemenperin) through the Directorate General of Small, Medium and Multifarious Industries (IKMA) has prepared mitigation, so that the national footwear industry is more resilient by strengthening supply chains and working on the potential of the footwear industry in the domestic market.

"Although 2023 is haunted by the world economic recession, the Ministry of Industry is very confident that the national footwear industry will be able to survive. The government has prepared fiscal and non-fiscal policies as an effort to mitigate the recession," said Director General of IKMA at the Ministry of Industry Reni Yanita in a press statement, quoted on Saturday, January 21.

The Director General of IKMA said that after being faced with pressure due to the COVID-19 pandemic, footwear IKM was again faced with a potential recession threat this year.

However, based on data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) until the third quarter of 2023, the footwear industry still shows great potential, coupled with the value of domestic sales which reached IDR 5.07 trillion.

"This industry is also classified as labor-intensive, with a total workforce absorption of 159,400 people from total small and micro industries throughout the footwear IKM region in Indonesia," said Reni.

Meanwhile, the export performance of national footwear products in the third quarter of 2022 also shows good prospects, which amounted to USD 5.949 billion, up from USD 4.388 billion in the third quarter of 2021.

"During the January-September 2022 period, the export volume of the skin industry, skin and footwear goods reached 337.48 thousand tons, an increase of 34.28 percent compared to January-September 2021 (yoy), with a trade balance of the footwear industry surplus 5.191 billion US dollars," said Reni.

Furthermore, Reni said, in order to further strengthen performance in the footwear industry sector, his party through the Indonesian Footwear Industry Empowerment Center (BPIPI) continues to collaborate with footwear IKM business partners.

In addition to the partnership program, BPIPI also encourages product development programs in which there is technology development, as well as marketing promotion market access programs for export-oriented footwear IKMs.

"Last year, BPIPI partnered with APLF ASEAN at a skin and industrial exhibition that brought in footwear industry players from upstream to downstream as an effort to strengthen the supply chain," he explained.

BPIPI has also consistently encouraged footwear IKMs to be more concerned about intellectual property protection, pay attention to product packaging value, and obtain an SNI Sign Use Product Certificate (SPPT) for leather safety shoe products.

Throughout 2022, BPIPI has campaigned for test awareness for footwear IKMs to prioritize product quality for consumer convenience.

BPIPI also continues to provide consultation regarding quality and testing for IKM so that products are more superior.

"Currently, product quality is important for product selection by consumers. High quality products can easily win competition. With a test awareness campaign, it is hoped that all IKMs can apply the quality of footwear products according to standards," said Reni.

He also said that BPIPI is proactive in facilitating export-oriented footwear IKM players to open and work on new export market opportunities to Middle Eastern, South Asia and Africa countries.

"The growth in footwear support industries, the mastery of local brands in the domestic market and the increase in class IKM will strengthen interaction in the ecosystem. With a strong footwear industry ecosystem, the national footwear industry will be more independent and strong," concluded Reni.