As part of the National Strategy of Inclusion Finance, the Ministry of Communications and Informatics is encouraging all sectors of the economy, to grow and develop through the adoption of ICT.
The Ministry of Communications and Informatics in Indonesia (KOMINFO) has set a target of getting 1 million fishermen and farmers to go online by 2019 to improve their market access and raise their income levels.
By leveraging technology, the farmers and fishermen would be able to access relevant information, such as weather forecasts in the region, even from remote areas of the country, helping them increase productivity or improve safety. They can also share their knowledge and experience through the Internet.
By tracking movements in commodity prices and marketing and selling their products online, they can raise their earnings. Boosting digital payments and moving to a cashless economy is another aspect of the adoption of digital technologies, which is expected to result in improved financial inclusion and economic equality.
Jakarta Post reported that KOMINFO is working with the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry and start-ups to achieve the target. The Ministry has been collaborating with agriculture-focused e-commerce platforms such as TaniHub and Eragano to get farmers online.
As part of the National Strategy of Inclusion Finance (SNKI), launched in November 2016, the Ministry of Communications and Informatics is encouraging all sectors of the economy, including agriculture and fisheries to grow and develop through the adoption of ICT.
KOMINFO has also been working to bring Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) into the digital economy stimulate business growth and boost employment. In August 2017, the President of Indonesia signed the country’s e-commerce roadmap which will be a guide for the central and regional governments to establish policy and create action plans for the acceleration of e-commerce. It assigns responsibilities and sets key targets to be achieved by government institutions over the next two years.
The roadmap has eight major components: There are eight major components to the roadmap: funding, taxation, consumer protection, education and human resources, communication infrastructure, logistics, cyber security and the implementing organisation.
KOMINFO also aims to complete the construction of a nationwide fibre optic network by 2019 to provide reliable Internet connection in remote areas.
