Encouraging SMEs to Go Global, Ministry of Trade Signs Cooperation Agreement with Pertamina

Jakarta, June 22, 2023 - The Ministry of Trade, through the Directorate General of National Export Development (PEN), has signed a cooperation agreement with PT Pertamina (Persero) to strengthen small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to enable them to become exporters or 'Go Global' SMEs. The cooperation agreement signing titled "Export-oriented Small and Medium Enterprises Advancement for Export Development" was conducted by the Director General of PEN, Didi Sumedi, and Corporate Secretary of Pertamina, Brahmantya Satyamurti Poerwadi, today, Thursday (22/6), at the Ministry of Trade’s office, Jakarta.

This step aims to strengthen the SME sector, advance the national economy, and create an inclusive and sustainable business environment for domestic SMEs, especially those capable to enter the export market. The Directorate General of PEN and Pertamina will synergize and utilize their resources to support export-oriented SME development.

"With strong collaboration between the government and stakeholders such as Pertamina, we can realize a shared vision to build a resilient, innovative, and highly competitive SME ecosystem in the global market. This way, those SME businesses can be sustainable and have a broader economic impact," said Didi.

Didi explained that the cooperation’s scope includes enhancing business actors’ export capacity and conducting trade promotions for SMEs to expand their export market. The Ministry of Trade and Pertamina are committed to complementing and supporting each other in encouraging SMEs to 'Go Global'.

"Collaboration will be realized through an active role in providing technical assistance, mentoring in capacity building and competitiveness, as well as expanding market access for SME products," explained Didi.

Brahmantya stated that Pertamina's fostered SMEs are selected business actors who have gone through a rigorous curation process in programs such as UMK Academy and Pertapreneur Aggregator. UMK Academy is a development program for small and medium enterprises, while Pertapreneur Aggregator is a competition for SME entrepreneurs as business integrators. Each year, 100 SMEs are selected based on their export activities, whether occasional or regular.

"Through this collaboration, Pertamina hopes that its fostered SMEs can expand their market overseas and contribute to the national export value increase. We also hope that Pertamina’s fostered SMEs can receive capacity-building facilitation through export education and training activities, as well as opportunities to promote their products to the global market through various promotional activities organized by the Ministry of Trade," said Brahmantya.

To further maximize the impact for the fostered SMEs, Brahmantya added that Pertamina intends to participate and synergize in several export development programs such as Trade Expo Indonesia (TEI) and Jakarta Muslim Fashion Week (JMFW), which are held annually.

VP of Corporate Communication of Pertamina, Fadjar Djoko Santoso, added that MSMEs’ development is part of the company's Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Responsibility (TJSL) program to achieve economic self-reliance. It is also Pertamina's effort to support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) goal 8 achievement, which aims to promote inclusive and sustainable economic growth, productive and decent employment opportunities.

"Through various development programs, we hope that Pertamina's MSMEs can progress, allowing MSME entrepreneurs’ potential to expand their market reach and improve access to financing," explained Fadjar.

Pertamina, as a leading company in the energy transition, is committed to supporting the Net Zero Emission 2060 target by continuously promoting programs that directly impact the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) achievement. All these efforts align with Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) implementation across all Pertamina's business lines and operations.**