Erick Thohir: SOE Governance Successfully Recognized By OECD

SOE Minister Erick Thohir. (Photo: Mery Handayani/VOI)

JAKARTA - The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) recognizes that the governance of State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN) in Indonesia is currently in line with the best practices of OECD which aim to ensure equal competition with private companies.

This success is inseparable from the less bureaucracy program which has been run since 2020. One of them is reflected in the arrangement of regulations and the simplification of SOE Minister Regulations from 45 Regulations of the Minister of SOEs to 3 Regulations of the Minister of SOEs compiled in 2022.

The breakthrough made by the Ministry of SOEs is also a driving force for the acceleration of SOEs to compete based on clear rules of the game, so that SOEs are not only on a national scale but also internationally.

SOE Minister Erick Thohir said in the OECD report discussing the indicators of Product Market Regulations (PMR), it was stated that the SOE Governance was in line with OECD countries.

"This indicates that the Ministry of SOEs has been on the right track in terms of SOE governance, especially the transformation of regulations," he said in an official statement, Monday, July 22.

Efforts to organize regulations and simplify the Regulation of the Minister of SOEs or also known as the 'Omnibus Law of BUMN Regulations' have guided Law Number 13 of 2022 (UU 13/2022) concerning the Second Amendment to Law Number 12 of 2011 concerning the Establishment of Legislation.

Law 13/2022 was born with one of the considerations so that the drafting of laws and regulations also adds arrangements regarding the omnibus method and strengthens meaningful community involvement and participation (meaningful participation).

Erick said the basis for the steps taken to simplify and regulate the regulation of the Minister of SOEs is none other than to anticipate changes that occur globally, but still have a legal basis so that the business run by SOEs can remain relevant and adhere to the principle of prudence (prudent).

"I hope this breakthrough can be a guide in dealing with globalization and we are not confined to that (problem) circle, so we can anticipate rapid changes by issuing prudent policies and decisions," said Erick.

Erick said the Indonesian government through the Ministry of SOEs continues to be committed to adopting the best practices recommended by OECD.

This step to improve BUMN governance is taken to ensure healthy competition between SOEs and private companies.

In terms of procurement of government goods and services, continued Erick, SOEs are no longer given special treatment.

This ensures that all companies, both state-owned and private, have the same opportunity in the procurement process, thus creating a healthier and fairer competition climate.

In addition, the government's involvement in the BUMN commercial business operation has significantly decreased compared to before.

"This shows the government's efforts to provide more freedom and flexibility to SOEs in managing their operations," he explained.

For your information, currently Indonesia is in the process of becoming a full member of OECD. Indonesia's goal to become a full member of OECD is to strengthen competitiveness globally, including BUMN. This achievement is certainly a bright spot for Indonesia, getting closer to the target of becoming a full member of OECD.