Jakarta – The synergy between State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN), the central government, and regional governments is being strengthened to ensure a more equitable and inclusive Indonesian economy.
Minister of State-Owned Enterprises, Erick Thohir, emphasized that state-owned enterprises will continue to play a role as a balancer of the national economy, in line with President Prabowo Subianto’s commitment to accelerate economic equality.
“I will meet with the president directors (dirut) of BUMN in the next few weeks to ensure that the program requested by President Prabowo Subianto is not only limited to statistics and numbers, but also equal. High economic growth is useless if equality is not achieved,” said Erick Thohir at the Media Center of the Ministry of BUMN, Jakarta.
Erick explained that BUMN will continue the people’s economy program that has been running for the past five years. Although the market is increasingly open, BUMN can still compete competitively while protecting the people’s economy. One concrete example is the role of BUMN banks that still prioritize financing for small, medium, and ultra-micro businesses.
“Bank Himbara, for example, 92 percent of its credit is given to small, medium and ultra-micro businesses. The Mekaar program, which has 21.2 million customers, is also an important pillar in developing the village economy,” said Erick.
In the future, Erick is preparing various breakthroughs to boost the performance and contribution of BUMN in supporting national development. He also mentioned that the BUMN dividend target for 2025 of Rp 90 trillion is ready to be achieved.
“This is a big hope from the government and the community, that BUMN will not only contribute to economic growth, but also become an important pillar in increasing state revenues from taxes and dividends,” concluded Erick.
Meanwhile, the BPIP RI Geopolitical and Geostrategic Expert Council, Prof. Dr. Ermaya Suradinata assessed that the approach from the village to the center allows local communities to play an active role as agents of change, so that the growing economy comes from local strength. This synergy is expected to strengthen the local economy and accelerate economic equality throughout Indonesia, while also proving the success of the government’s program in empowering communities through BUMN.
“Development from the village has great potential in eradicating structural poverty that shackles rural communities. This strategy can reduce economic inequality that has occurred so far due to dependence on urban areas,” he said.