Jakarta, The Indonesia Post – Minister of Finance (Menkeu) Sri Mulyani said that the investment value of Indonesia’s digital economy reached US$4.7 billion during the first quarter of 2021, based on research by Google, Temasek, and Bain & Company.
“This figure exceeds the highest value for the last four years,” said Sri Mulyani at the Integrity and Compliance Task Force B20 Conference which was monitored online in Jakarta, Wednesday.
Thus, she considered the data to show that the digital economy has high potential as a source of domestic growth in the future.
The digital economy in Indonesia will continue to grow stronger. As of 2021, the value of Indonesia’s digital economy is at the highest position in Southeast Asia, which is projected to reach US$70 billion. Then in 2025 it is estimated to reach more than 120 billion US dollars.
Even so, Sri Mulyani said there are several challenges in developing the digital economy in the country, namely the disparity in internet access, especially between regions and between income levels, where connectivity is mainly between Java and other islands.
Another challenge is cybersecurity, which is also very important and a real threat to the digital economy. Thus data protection for consumers becomes very critical.
The same tax treatment between local and foreign entrepreneurs is also one of the problems and limitations of funding schemes for startups, as well as the low level of human resources in the field of entrepreneurs.
Based on these opportunities and challenges, the former World Bank Managing Director believes that Indonesia needs to prepare for the future because technological advances will change the way the world works.
“We must also be more responsive and prepared to face the challenges of risk and the dynamics of digital economic development in the future,” she stressed.
She continued, the growth of the digital economy sector was accompanied by digital financial transactions. And while it is undoubtedly beneficial for increasing financial inclusion, the growth of the digital economy sector is also creating new platforms for money laundering and economic crime. (mhn/bbs)
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