Governor Khofifah Proposes Madiun Temple Batik Center To Become A Foreign Exchange Village

East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa accompanied by Madiun Regent Ahmad Dawami, Madiun Deputy Regent Hari Wuryanto/ANTARA/HO-Diskominfo Madiun Regency

MADIUN - East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa proposed the Oemah Batik Candi batik center in Candimulyo Village, Dolopo District, Madiun Regency, to become a foreign exchange village to the Indonesian Export Financing Agency (LPEI) as an effort to improve the welfare of its people.

The governor said that so far there are not many batik centers that are consistent with hand-written batik products. Most of them have a mixture of written batik, stamped batik, and also printing. His party saw that Oemah Batik Candi continued to be consistent only in written batik.

"I asked if this was written batik only or with a stamp. It turned out to be written batik. Of course this is something that is consistent and not many people do it," said Khofifah during a visit at Oemah Batik Candi, Madiun, as reported by Antara, Tuesday, February 15.

According to him, because it is unique, his party proposed Oemah Batik Candi to become a foreign exchange village to LPEI. With several criteria used as an assessment by LPEI, Khofifah assessed that the Oemah Batik Candi in Madiun Regency had met the requirements.

That is, it is a product of one's own property, not the work of others, which is traded. Then it is unique, has an export market, and is carried out by many people in one village supported by group institutions.

Governor Khofifah also took the time to make canting batik with local batik craftsmen. On that occasion he conveyed that every batik produced was equipped with a philosophical story. This is intended to strengthen the batik product itself.

Khofifah also suggested that the local batik center involve people with disabilities to participate in batik, so that more local villagers are empowered and their welfare increases.

The East Java Provincial Government is currently looking to find villages in East Java that have the potential to become foreign exchange villages.

"We go to villages that have the potential to carry out their own assessments. Later, it will be LPEI that will determine whether to qualify as a foreign exchange village," he said.

Khofifah said, LPEI gave a quota of 15 villages in East Java to become foreign exchange villages in 2022. However, his party hopes that this figure can be developed again into a quota of 20 villages.

He is grateful for the large quota given, so that it can boost the welfare of the village community.

"Later on, after the proposed village becomes a foreign exchange village, LPEI will assist the designer, be assisted in financing, and assisted with market access. If it is included in the LPEI catalog, I hope to be able to accelerate its development," he said.

Meanwhile, the Regent of Madiun Ahmad Dawami when welcoming the visit of Governor Khofifah expressed his gratitude for choosing Oemah Batik Candi in Candimulyo Village to be proposed as a foreign exchange village.

"The governor's presence here certainly gives new enthusiasm for batik craftsmen and MSMEs in Madiun Regency," said Kaji Mbing, the nickname of Regent Ahmad Dawami.

Madiun Regency has a distinctive pattern of batik from the village of fighters and porang which have become icons. Currently, batik is part of community empowerment which is being promoted by the Madiun Regency Government.