Digitalization Is The Key To Empowering The ASEAN Women's Economy

Chairman of the Indonesian Employers' Association (Apindo) Shinta W Kamdani. (Photo: Doc. ANTARA)

JAKARTA - Chairman of the Indonesian Employers' Association (Apindo) Shinta W Kamdani said digitalization is the key to supporting women's economic empowerment because so far women, both in Indonesia and in ASEAN, are still experiencing problems with getting equal access to financing.

"Earlier we talked about digitization, this is important now to facilitate the empowerment of women. So digitalization is key," he said, quoted from Antara, Saturday, September 2.

However, Shinta reminded, digital access in each country is not the same so it needs special attention to support women's economic empowerment.

He stated that currently women still have many financial access problems in supporting their businesses, especially women who do MSMEs.

"If we look now there are still a lot of women in Indonesia who do not get the opportunity to get formal funding, especially when most of us MSMEs are informal sectors," he said.

According to him, when women want to apply for a loan to a bank, they are generally constrained because they do not have collateral because all assets belong to their husbands.

On the other hand, women who work, especially in the MSME sector, are difficult to identify and do not look like women who have their own business.

"There needs to be more transparency inclusiveness about how this woman who started her own business can get more support," he said.

However, according to Shinta, financial access is only one of many things that are obstacles to women's economic empowerment. Other aspects such as financial assistance and literacy also need attention.

"How can he get adequate capacity such as financial literacy such as education about finances and education for women's finances," he said.

The ASEAN Women CEO of the ASEAN Women's Forum or the ASEAN Women's CEO Forum is one of the side events in the ASEAN Business and Investment Summit week at the 43rd ASEAN Summit which was held in Jakarta.

The forum aims to provide space for women to share stories and inspire each other, including business panels about financing opportunities in women's empowerment.