The Government Encourages Digitalization For Sustainable And Inclusive Economic Growth

Illustration (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) stated that the Indonesian government will continue to encourage digitalization efforts as the key to sustainable and inclusive economic growth.

According to him, this strategy is not without obstacles. The President revealed that there are still a number of digital access gaps, so concrete actions are needed in strengthening the fundamentals of digital transformation.

Digital literacy and financial inclusion for MSMEs need to be encouraged, given its huge contribution to the economy, the Head of State said at the APEC Summit in Bangkok, Thailand, quoted Wednesday, November 23.

According to the President, there are three main things that require handling, namely regarding sustainability, regional economic integration, and digitalization and inclusion.

Indonesia invites APEC's economy to encourage equal access to digital through increasing the availability of digital infrastructure. APEC areas must be a model in realizing equal access to digital in the world, without leaving anyone (moving no one behind)," he said.

The President added that strengthening human resources in the digital sector needs to be improved to support infrastructure development and digital technology. Collaborative steps between APEC economies need to be strengthened to meet the needs and adaptation of the workforce to deal with the Industry 4.0 era.

"Increasing capacity through education and training needs to be increased, especially to reach groups of women, teenagers, and vulnerable groups," he stressed.

For information, the G20 Indonesia Presidency in 2022 will also encourage payment system support to prepare the post-digital-based pandemic economy. In addition, the Finance Strip has discussed the development of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC) in order to facilitate cross-border payments while maintaining international monetary stability and the financial system.

From a regional perspective, the G20 Indonesia Presidency encourages the implementation of Regional Payment Connectivity (RPC) in ASEAN countries as an initiative to digital transformation.

Indonesia's G20 Presidency also encourages increased financial inclusion for vulnerable groups, one of which is through the Yogyakarta Financial Inclusion Framework agreement to utilize financial sector digitization in encouraging productivity in marginal or vulnerable groups, which includes MSMEs, women and young people.