Committed to Developing MSMEs, BRI Supports Istana Berbatik

Kapanlagi.com - As one of Indonesia's cultural heritages, it is only fitting to preserve the sustainability of batik.With its uniqueness, batik has become an attraction for local communities and even internationally.Therefore, in order to celebrate National Batik Day which falls on October 2, 2023, the Istana Berbatik event was held as a form of preserving the cultural identity of the archipelago.

The event itself was held on October 1, 2023 at the Istana Negara. In addition, the grand performance was also attended by influential figures such as the President of the Republic of Indonesia Joko Widodo, Minister of SOEs Erick Thohir, Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy Sandiaga Uno, Deputy Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy Angela Tanusoedibjo, and other ministers.

In relation to this, through the real support of PT Bank Rakyat Indonesia (Persero) Tbk or BRI, it continues to be committed to advancing MSMEs, one of which is by participating in events involving batik artisans and entrepreneurs in the country.

500 Participants Participated

As is known, around 500 participants joined, consisting of batik MSME actors, government officials, state-owned enterprise (BUMN) officials, public figures, representatives of Nusantara kingdoms, and ambassadors of friendly countries.

Deputy Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy, who is also the Chairperson of the Istana Berbatik Implementation Committee, Angela Tanusoedibjo, appreciates the support from various parties that have contributed to the success of this event.

“Istana Berbatik showcases a 150-meter catwalk with the magnificent and historic background of Istana Merdeka. This event presents the best batik collections from various MSMEs fostered by Bank Indonesia and BRI, as well as batik works by Indonesian fashion designers,” she said. Through this event, it is hoped that batik, as Indonesia's cultural heritage, will be increasingly loved, created, and worn to ensure its sustainability.

Meanwhile, the Deputy CEO of BRI, Catur Budi Harto, also revealed that batik is an intangible heritage of Indonesia and has been recognized by UNESCO as a world heritage.

“Therefore, it must be preserved and maintained together. BRI, as a bank with UMKM as its core business, continues to strive to realize its real role in supporting creative business actors,” he said.

Empowerment Program for MSMEs

So far, BRI has focused on providing financing in the MSME segment, especially the Micro segment, and has built sustainable financing through empowerment and the UMKM Naik Kelas method.

BRI has various empowerment programs, one of which is the klasterku hidupku program which currently has empowered 17,418 business clusters throughout Indonesia, and these clusters have at least received 1,155 training and literacy programs as well as 372 productive infrastructure assistance. And furthermore, the BUMN.BRI House program has owned 54 BUMN Houses, which accommodate more than 400 thousand MSME actors and have conducted more than 10 thousand trainings. This empowerment program includes batik craftsmen clusters spread across several regions in Indonesia.

For your information, until the end of the second quarter of 2023, BRI has successfully disbursed credits and financing worth Rp1,202.13 trillion, with the main support for growth in the micro segment, which grew by 11.41% YoY. The double-digit growth in micro credit disbursement has also continuously increased the proportion of BRI's MSME credit. This makes it the first time that BRI's MSME credit has exceeded Rp1,000 trillion, and BRI is committed to further increasing the portion of MSME credit to reach 85% in 2024.

(kpl/glo)