Airlangga Reveals Three Pillars Of Indonesia's Economic Transformation

Coordinating Minister for the Economy Airlangga Hartarto (Photo: Antara)

JAKARTA - Indonesia continues to strengthen national economic resilience amid global developments that are still full of uncertainty. Geopolitical situations, the slowdown in the world economy, and global market volatility demand a policy direction that is increasingly measurable and long-term oriented.

Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto emphasized that economic transformation is the main foundation in ensuring sustainable and inclusive growth.

Indonesia continues to transform with three pillars of transformation, namely related to green growth, digital acceleration, and inclusive growth. As (direction) the President, Indonesia must continue to be committed to building a more accelerated economy, a resilient economy, a clean economy, and a just economy," he said in his official statement, quoted Friday, November 21.

In the pillars of green growth, Airlangga explained that accelerating the energy transition is a very strategic agenda for Indonesia.

He added that the Government encourages the development of renewable energy, including plans to make PLTS prototypes and accelerate their utilization, as well as the expansion of bioenergy from B40 to B50, bioethanol, Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), and palm oil.

Airlangga also emphasized that the Government is preparing a large-scale electric energy transmission network (Green Super Grid) from Sumatra to Nusa Tenggara, which will at the same time strengthen regional connectivity and support the development of trilateral data centers between Indonesia, Singapore and Johor.

In addition, he said the Government will continue to expand its targeted PLTSa project to reach 33 projects by 2029.

In the pillars of digital acceleration, Airlangga said that Indonesia's digital economy continues to show significant development and is one of the new sources of growth.

He explained that the national digital economy has reached 90 billion US dollars and is projected to grow to 360 billion US dollars by 2030, as well as supported by the implementation of the Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA) which will accelerate the integration of digital trade in the region.

According to him, this transformation is also strengthened by the optimization of the cross-border digital payment system.

"QRIS has been used in Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam, Laos, Brunei, Japan, and Korea, used by 57 million consumers," he explained.

On this occasion, Airlangga added that the Government also emphasized the importance of strengthening future technology such as AI, semiconductors, genome sequencing, and quantum computing.

In addition, he also highlighted the need to increase the number of startups in Indonesia because this step is directed to close the digital divide and encourage the birth of an innovation ecosystem that is able to support long-term economic growth.

Meanwhile, in the pillars of inclusive growth, Airlangga emphasized the importance of equitable growth benefits through strengthening people's financing, support for MSMEs, and developing a more equitable economic area.

"Various financing programs for farmers, industry players, and people who want to own their homes continue to be expanded so that all regions have wider access to economic opportunities and job creation," he said.

He added that the Government is also targeting an increase in green jobs in line with the development of the energy transition agenda.

According to him, to prepare workers who are able to fill these opportunities, the Government has accelerated the reskilling and upskilling programs in the clean energy, modern manufacturing, and digital economy sectors.

"With these three pillars (green growth, digital acceleration, and inclusive growth) we strengthen Indonesia's position as a constructive partner and are committed to building a more resilient future economy. Green growth must translate into real impact for Indonesia, for the region, and for the world," he concluded.