Deputy Minister of Trade Jerry Sambuaga emphasized that consumers are agents of economic change in Indonesia. By strengthening smart consumers, there will be a wave of increasing the competitiveness of products produced by domestic business actors. This was emphasized by the Deputy Minister of Trade Jerry Sambuaga in the 2022 National Consumer Day (Harkonas) talk meeting with the theme "Consumers are empowered to buy domestic products" at the Ministry of Trade office, Tuesday (19/4). This activity was organized by the Directorate General of Consumer Protection and Orderly Commerce (PKTN) of the Ministry of Trade to commemorate the Harkonas which falls on April 20, 2022. As explained by the Deputy Minister of Trade, Jerry, Harkonas aims to increase the importance of rights and obligations to consumers. "Harkonas also aims to encourage the production and trade of quality and competitive goods/services, place consumers as agents of change in determining Indonesia's economic activities, encourage the government to carry out the task of increasing consumer protection, and encourage consumer protection community networks," explained Deputy Minister of Trade Jerry.
Indonesian consumers are expected to be more aware of their rights and obligations to make the best choices and have high nationalism to buy domestic products. Indonesian consumers are one of the priorities served and their interests protected by the Ministry of Trade. In addition, Indonesia's population of 270.2 million people has an important role in the national gross domestic product (GDP). Of the total GDP in 2021 which reached 16.97 quadrillion, the household consumption expenditure component contributed 54.42 percent or reached Rp9.24 quadrillion, which means that the Indonesian economy is still dominated by the household consumption component. According to the Vice Minister of Trade, the 2021 Indonesian Consumer Empowerment Index is 50.39, which is at the Able level, and there are two more levels above it, namely Critical and Empowered. For this reason, it is our collective obligation to participate in providing literacy and socialization to the community to ensure their rights and obligations. So, later it can increase the IKK, which in turn makes consumers empowered. "It's not enough just to be a smart consumer, we have to love domestic products. Domestic products are not inferior to foreign products and we must be proud to use them,” he added.
The Director General of Small, Medium and Multifarious Industries at the Ministry of Industry, Reni Yanita, explained that currently the number of MSMEs in Indonesia has reached 65.47 million (99.99% of the total business units). MSMEs are the backbone of the economy in Indonesia, the contribution of MSMEs to the national GDP reaches 61.97%. Small and medium industries as part of MSMEs also have a significant role in the national economy, accounting for around 4.4 million business units (99.77% of the total number of industries) with a total employment of 10.36 million (66.25%). of all industrial sector workers). The characteristics of small and medium industries are as producers that will provide a multiplier effect on the development of other MSME sectors such as trade, agriculture, tourism, and so on. "We hope that with the support of all industrial players in Indonesia, the small and medium industry sector can increase its market share, starting from the domestic market and then exporting the advantages with the best economies of scale. In addition, we want small and medium-sized industries to upgrade and MSMEs to also increase to become small and medium-sized industries," explained Reni.
Meanwhile, General Chairperson of the Indonesian E-Commerce Association (idEA) Bima Laga explained, currently idEA has followed up and will continue to process complaints that were forwarded to idEA which in 2021 amounted to 9,393 complaints. "If a consumer complaint violation is found, the Directorate General of PKTN will send a product link to us, and we will forward it to members. In less than 24 hours, the product link will be removed," said Bima. Bima added that idEA has also made many programs that support the improvement of MSMEs. One of them, since May 14, 2020, idEA has created a Proudly Made in Indonesia program that facilitates MSMEs to be onboard on digital platforms. In addition to the digital platform, idEA also provides a physical platform, namely at Terminal 3 of Soekarno Hatta Airport and Minangkabau Airport in Padang, so that it can reach more consumers. In addition, in addition to collaborating with the Ministry of Trade, idEA also collaborates with the Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM) and the Directorate General of Intellectual Property Rights of the Ministry of Law and Human Rights. "The Proudly Made in Indonesia Program is a massive movement that shows that the government is serious about supporting MSMEs, this has become a trademark (trademark). For this reason, MSMEs are expected to be able to take advantage of the momentum by using the BBI logo on their products," explained Bima. The founder and CEO of Loony Store Karlina said that the needs and comfort of consumers have always been the main concern, both in terms of quality and service in product complaints. “Hopefully MSMEs can always be supported in terms of facilities, due to limited resources. So, in the future, MSMEs can move up to the next level," concluded Karlina.
