InfoSAWIT, JAKARTA – The Government of Indonesia would keep reinforcing downstream industries to develop to realize the economic progress 6 - 8 percent, as regulated in the Nationally Long Term – Development Plan 2025 - 2045. One strategic thing would be about to develop 10 (ten) prioritized industries by focusing on agro sectors. The policy would be about to deepen industrial structures from the upstream to downstream sectors, and maximize one abundant potential natural resource, which is, palm oil.
Ministry of Industry, Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita said that palm oil downstream industries positively delivered advantages significantly in numbers and the kinds. “In 2011, there were only 48 palm oil derivative products and in 2024 the numbers have increased to be about 200 kinds," Agus said, as InfoSAWIT quoted, Saturday (12/10).
Besides, Indonesia was the first country to implement B30 for biodiesel. "We would keep increasing to be B40 and hope to be B100 in the future," he said.
His statement would be the response to the report of Chief Economist of the World Bank in Asia Pacific, Aaditya Mattoo that said Indonesia would depend on the economy from commodity prices in the globe, particularly coal and palm oil. Agus thought, Indonesia did not significantly depend on palm oil, thanks to downstream sectors that ran well.
“Palm oil downstream sector would be enough even though the price fluctuation would have something to with but it would not be significant to the economy nationally,” he said.
Back to Mattoo, he said that the close import restriction policy made manufacturer sectors not strong enough to help the economy when they got cheaper. Agus thought import restriction policy was published as the affirmative action to protect the domestic industries.
“There is nothing wrong with import restriction. We just restricted product imports. The materials would be significant for the other industries in this country to increase the competition,” Agus claimed and said that the policy would be effective namely when the globe got sluggish because of pandemic and conflicts.
“Manufacturer products in this country helped the economy and the game changer when the crisis took place in this world,” he said.
He also mentioned that protection policy was published by many countries locally to protect their markets. “Many countries published closer regulation of foreign products but we loosened it,” he said.
In the response to national scale media about the World Bank reported, Agus felt strange because it did not specifically discuss commodity price fluctuation and import restriction policy. “I did not find any quote that discussed the issues in the World Bank’s report,” he said by assuming that there would be misunderstanding about the news.
The Government of Indonesia would remain optimist with downstream industries and would publish the best policy so that the industries in this country would be stronger and more competitive in the globe. Palm oil downstream industries and affirmative policies about imports would be the significant things to confirm the stability and economic progress in the future. (T2)
