The Ministry of
Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises target the contribution of
exports of product of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) by 2014 o
increase 20%. At this time, the contribution of MSMEs to the national exports
is only around 17%. A total of 600,000 MSMEs from around 55 million MSMEs in
Indonesia have been exporting various kinds of commodities. Most of MSMEs
export products are handicraft, fashion and accessories, as well as furniture,
food products, and herbal medicines.
MSMEs export
contribution is small when compared to large business such as plantation ad
mining. However, MSMEs still have the potential to enter the export market. “In
addition, its contribution to the national non oil & gas exports is
greater”, said Assistant Deputy for Export and Import Affairs of the Ministry
of Cooperative and SMEs, Bonar Hutauruk, in Jakarta (Friday, July 12).
Bonar said that of the
600,000 MSMEs that are already doing exports, they are divided into three
categories, namely direct export, export through middlemen or traders, and
cooperation system. To further encourage MSMEs to enter the export market, the
Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs is also conducting trials of cargo sharing
program, where in the program a number of MSMEs can jointly perform export
directly. With this system, data of exports of MSMEs products can be better
monitored, in addition to providing greater profit margin for MSMEs.
Meanwhile, as many as
75 SMEs under the guidance of the Ministry of Trade will develop its trademark
this year. The trademark development is done in order to facilitate local SME
products to penetrate the export market. Because a products with a well-planned
brand, which is designed attractively, and communicated appropriately, will
more easily enter the overseas market and compete with products of other
countries.
The use of trademark
by local SMEs is expected to increase buying interest and selling prices of
their products. The existence of trademark will also enable consumers to
identify the products, so that they can more quickly search and find the same
product in the future. Increase in the competitiveness of Indonesia export products
through brand development is a strategic move that had great benefits both in
the short and long terms. Unfortunately, there are still many business,
particularly SMEs, who are not aware of the role brand in increasing export
competitiveness.
The Ministry of
Industry reported that the products of SMEs that have been patented is very
small, which is only about 1% of total of SME products nationally. In fact,
patents are very important to protect the copyright of SMEs products. Based on
data of the Ministry of Industry, currently there are approximately 3.8 million
units of SMEs in the country. Approximately 75% of them are spreading across
Java, while the remaining 25% are outside Java.
The problems faced by
SMEs in introducing their products abroad is very complex, in addition to
internal issues that have not been resolved until now. A variety of proven
strategies to penetrate the export market barriers is a challenge for each SME.
Marketing strategy, for example, in marketing their products, MSMEs need to
first find an export market before producing goods. After a target market is
found, SMEs conduct an online communication through multiple social networking
sites on the internet. “Here, they also explain their products to prospective
buyers”, he said. (E)
Business News - July 17,2013
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