Digitalization is at the forefront of the Indonesian government’s priority, with context further given towards economic recovery as well as digital transformation. Due the Covid-19 Pandemic, in 2020 the Indonesian government is promoting massive digitization in various aspects of life. Within this instance, BAKTI KOMINFO provides a significant window towards the population within disadvantaged regions. That’s being said, BAKTI KOMINFO has sought to empower and support economic growth by elevating small-medium enterprises through the utilization of piloting project of MSME’s Digital Training in 4 Districts, training on digital marketing for MSMEs in Super Priority Destinations and disadvantaged regions. This has also led BAKTI KOMINFO to create websites to develop online stores of MSME’s, access to capital, empowering local facilitators to assist MSMEs in their district, digital transformation for MSMEs and BUMDES as well as the development of customer-centric digital training. The program engendered impact to approximately 5400 MSMEs.

http://baktidesa.id/

• Indonesia

• The unemployed
• The poor
• Remote and rural communities
• Micro, Small Enterprises (MSEs), Village-Owned Enterprises, Local Business People

Based on data from the Ministry of Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises in March 2021, the number of MSMEs in Indonesia reached 64.2 million with a contribution to Gross Domestic Product of 61.07 percent or Rp. 8,573.89 trillion. However, of that number, only around 3.79 million or about 8% have used online platforms to market their products. The government and other private institutions have also carried out many MSME digitization projects. However, one unique feature of the MSME and BUMDES Empowerment project carried out by BAKTI, is that it specializes in 3T area (remote, underdeveloped, outermost). There is a high potential for replication of this empowerment projects. Thus, BAKTI put the empowering BUMDES and SMEs as a prioritize project in its work plan until 2025.

In doing this program, BAKTI has laid the groundwork for replicability by building a seamless transformation of digitalization that centers around three phases which encompasses business and product development, the strengthening value chains, logistics, integration with digital payment systems as well as the onboarding to national e-commerce platforms.

The MSMEs and BUMDES empowering projects that have been implemented by BAKTI for the past year through a series of networking opportunities with BAKTI KOMINFO’s connected programs which are certainly expected to be sustainable, given the many benefits that can be obtained by the participants so far. The MSMEs and BUMDES in remote area are potential to be scaling up from Micro to Small and Medium level. From the existing projects, BAKTI already has participant database. The next action is to monitor the progress of each MSMEs and BUMDES that already gain knowledge through the training and mentoring, as well as facilitated with online store.

Furthermore, BAKTI can help to expand the MSMEs and BUMDES market to be global by identifying the export commodity from rural areas, especially those in BAKTI service area. Several private entities in Indonesia that has capabilities in promoting MSMEs in global market are willing to collaborate with BAKTI. In the next five years hopefully, there are several BAKTI fostered MSMEs ready to go international.

BAKTI KOMINFO’s program in the enabling of digitalizing businesses can be related to SDG 8 which promote the sustained, inclusive, and economic growth with full and productive employment that promotes decent work. This is in cohesion to the digitalization of businesses that allows the advancement of opportunities that can provide small businesses a way to enter new markets. BAKTI KOMINFO in this instance is supporting development-oriented policies that seek to support productive activities, descent work and the support that formalizes small and medium enterprises into the economic nexus of Indonesia’s captive market as well as greater access to financial services. This in turn also supports SDG 9 which seeks to build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation. This increases the access of small-scale industrial and other enterprises—in particular developing countries like Indonesia—to financial services. This pushes resiliency for small enterprises by going through innovation with digitalization.