Bank Mandiri And The E-Commerce Association Agree To Help MSMEs Advance To Class By Digitalization

Illustration. (Photo: Doc. Ministry of Finance)

JAKARTA - PT Bank Mandiri Tbk. together with the Indonesian E-Commerce Association (idEA) synergize to encourage micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to be able to maximize their role in making a full contribution to the national economy.

Bank Mandiri SEVP Micro and Consumer Finance Josephus K. Triprakoso said that one of the most effective ways to achieve this goal is to facilitate MSME activities through digital means.

"This strategy is in line with the government's efforts to encourage more MSME players to transform to digital platforms," he said when speaking at a Virtual Workshop entitled Digital Transformation of MSMEs Red and White, Wednesday, October 13.

According to Josephus, all stakeholders must collaborate to support MSMEs to adapt so that businesses can grow faster and be able to compete, even though the pandemic situation is still overshadowed.

"We hope that MSMEs can rise and rise to class so that they can jointly support economic recovery efforts," he said.

Furthermore, Josephus explained that the distribution of financing to the MSME sector by Bank Mandiri grew by 18.52 to Rp. 114.58 trillion by the end of last August. Of that amount, IDR 22.9 billion of which has been given to online sellers of e-commerce partners.

“MSMEs are the backbone of the national economy. For this reason, the success of the MSME business is a reflection of the nation's glory. It is fitting to help them in achieving success, "he said.

On the same occasion, the General Chairperson of idEA Bima Laga appreciated the joint commitment in helping MSMEs in Indonesia to be more digital.

“The world of e-commerce, which is part of the digital industry, also continues to develop to find its best form. For this reason, virtual workshops like this are very important to provide understanding to MSME friends so that they are always up to date with the current situation," he said.

For information, data from the Ministry of Cooperatives states that the number of MSMEs that have been integrated into the digital ecosystem has reached 15.9 million or 24.9 percent of the total MSME actors which are around 65 million units.

This number increased significantly during the pandemic from the previous 8 million MSMEs. The government itself targets 30 million MSMEs to be able to digitally onboard in 2024.

Meanwhile, survey results from Google and Temasek noted that Indonesia's digital economy in 2025 is projected to be the largest in Southeast Asia with a transaction value of IDR 1,826 trillion.

Meanwhile, Bank Indonesia estimates that the value of digital economy transactions through e-commerce will reach IDR 253 trillion in 2024.