Trade Minister M. Lutfi Brings MSME Issues To The G20 To Create Fair Competition

Illustration (Photo: Doc. Ministry of Finance)

JAKARTA - The Minister of Trade (Mendag) Muhammad Lutfi said efforts to improve the competitiveness of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), especially in the digital era like today, really need global support.

“Global support has a strategic position to create fair competition. For this reason, we strive for the current international trade system to be collaborative to ensure the welfare of MSMEs," he said in an official statement after attending a meeting of the Ministers of Trade of the G20 members as quoted on Sunday, October 17.

According to the Minister of Trade, the digitization of MSMEs is highly dependent on innovation and technology, which are generally not owned by developing countries like Indonesia.

"Without a qualified regulation at the international level, MSME competition in the digital era only produces 'winners' which actually kills other national small businesses and industries," he said.

Furthermore, one of the issues discussed at the G20 ministerial meeting was the challenges faced by MSMEs in penetrating global markets. He said, if MSMEs are now increasingly required to adapt using digital technology and contribute to the environment and sustainable development.

Then, in addition to talking about support for MSMEs, the Minister of Trade M. Lutfi also conveyed about a fair multilateral trading system.

“The G20 has an opportunity to call for international trade inequality. The crippled capacity between the ability of developing and developed countries to provide support in the agriculture and fisheries sector results in unfair competition,” he stressed.

The Trade Minister added that the G20 has a key role to play in providing political impetus so that the World Trade Organization (WTO) can provide policy space for developing countries.

“The momentum for WTO reform is an opportunity, especially for developing countries, to raise the issue of inequality in the multilateral trading system that has been going on for a long time. WTO reforms should prioritize the development aspect as an inseparable part of a number of WTO agreements,” said the Minister of Trade.

For information, Indonesia will be the President of the G20 in 2020. Meanwhile, this year the G20 Presidency is led by Italy.

The G20 or Group of 20 is a group of 20 countries with the largest economic level in the world which represents about 89 percent of global gross domestic product (GDP).