GBBI Launched, Pertamina Presents Thousands of Leading Indonesian MSME Products Through SMEXPO

Jakarta, October 12, 2021 – The Proudly Made in Indonesia East Kalimantan National Movement (GBBI) and Pertamina SMEXPO 2021 were officially launched in Samarinda Kalimantan on October 12, 2021. Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment of the Republic of Indonesia, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, carried out the East Kalimantan GBBI inauguration. 

The launch was also attended by Minister of Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions and Transmigration, Abdul Halim Iskandar, Minister of Manpower, Ida Fauziyah, Deputy Minister of Trade, Jerry Sambuaga, Governor of East Kalimantan, Isran Noor, and Director of Business Support PT Pertamina (Persero), Dedi Sunardi. Also present online were the Minister of Cooperatives and MSMEs, Teten Masduki, and the Governor of Bank Indonesia, Perry Warjiyo. 

Along with the launch of GBBI, Pertamina SMEXPO 2021 was also officially launched. Pertamina SMEXPO 2021 presents superior products from 220 Pertamina's Fostered Indonesian MSMEs. 

In his speech, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan stated that MSMEs are the backbone of the Indonesian economy. Therefore, they must be encouraged to move forward and enter the digital ecosystem. 

"MSMEs involve millions of jobs. There are 60 million people who work in MSMEs, and I hope we all encourage that," said Coordinating Minister Luhut. 

Coordinating Minister Luhut added that since the launch of GBBI by President Joko Widodo last year, the number of MSMEs entering the digital ecosystem had reached more than 8 million. Now, there are nearly 16 million MSMEs. 

"This means that within one year and four-month the number has increased by 400%, and I hope that later we can achieve our target in 2024 at 30 million," added Luhut. 

Business Supporting Director of PT Pertamina (Persero), Dedi Sunardi, said that GBBI East Kalimantan and Pertamina SMEXPO 2021 were the results of a good collaboration between the Ministry of Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration as the brand ambassador and Pertamina as the top brand. The movement is fully supported by the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs and Investment, East Kalimantan Provincial Government, and Bank Indonesia. 

According to Dedi, various digital training has been carried out starting last August 2021 as part of the pre-event of GBBI and Smexpo 2021. Pertamina has also prepared MSMEs and BUMDES to face the information technology era. 

"This year's Pertamina SMEXPO 2021 is the first Proudly Made in Indonesia Movement (GBBI) that use an in house platform, in the form of www.smexpo.pertamina.com. We involve 220 micro-enterprises that have been curated based on good product quality, some of which are even export-worthy products," said Dedi. 

Dedi added, reflecting on the last Pertamina SMEXPO 2020, this activity has involved more than 1,700 MSE products from 100 selected Pertamina foster partners. SMEXPO was visited by 32,000 visitors from 38 countries, such as America, Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, and the Netherlands. 

"We hope that SMEXPO can be put to good use by all participants and all those involved behind it. And hopefully, Indonesian MSMEs can still maintain their existence as a driving force for the Indonesian economy," said Dedi. 

The Governor of East Kalimantan, Isran Noor, expressed his gratitude and pride for the support of all parties in building cooperation to love and utilize Indonesian-made products. 

"On behalf of the government and the people of East Kalimantan, I would like to thank you for the support, especially the Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries as chairman of the GBBI. Hopefully, this event will be of value to the people of East Kalimantan in particular and the Indonesian nation in general," said Isran Noor.**