Business partnership campaign launched
JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto launched a national business partnership drive on Wednesday, appealing to local businesses to help each other compete in the global market.
Partnerships between large and small enterprises will help Indonesian businesses face economic globalization and will also modernize Indonesia's economy, Soeharto said.
"Without striving for economic unity, we will lose in a free competition, which will become the rule of the game in the world's future economy," he said when launching the drive.
"Our stance must be clear. Abroad, as a nation, we have to win this free competition. Inside, as a nation, we have to help each other so that we will become a reliable force," he said.
The President said Indonesian businesses must benefit from intensifying international trade. The determinant of winning global competition, he added, is improving efficiency in order to produce goods and services with a competitive edge.
He called on companies engaged in partnerships to improve efficiency so their partnerships will benefit consumers and not just the companies. "This drive has to benefit not only companies but also all the people... for the welfare of the people."
The partnership drive should help reduce the concentration of economic resources, which, if not reduced, could widen the gap between large and smaller businesses, he said.
Partnerships between large and small enterprises should be based on mutual benefit, he said.
"In industrialized countries, their economic base lies with small businesses. Thus, empowering small businesses has the same meaning as broadening the base of our national economy," Soeharto said, adding "We believe that small and medium-scale businesses, which are resilient, independent and efficient, will certainly be competent enough to compete in the free market."
Soeharto gave books on partnership programs and business profiles by tycoons of the Jimbaran group to Minister of Cooperatives and Small Enterprises Subiakto Tjakrawerdaya and tycoon Anthony Salim.
The forum groups 41 large business leaders who pledged in Jimbaran, Bali, last year to help the government eradicate poverty by forging partnerships with smaller enterprises and cooperatives.
The group has set up PT Mitra Dana Jimbaran with paid-up capital of Rp 50 billion (US$22.2 million) to provide cheap financing to the targeted enterprises and cooperatives.
Sudwikatmono, president of the country's largest cement producer, PT Indocement Tunggal Prakarsa, said the 41 business leaders have committed to form partnerships with 99,662 small enterprises and cooperatives across the country, with a combined partnership value of Rp 2.9 trillion.
PT Astra International leads the gang with a Rp 732.4 billion. commitment to build partnerships with 28,802 small firms and 4,958 cooperatives.
PT Bank Danamon has committed to forge partnerships with 50 small firms to the tune of Rp 700 billion. It is followed by the Salim Group, which has promised 22,896 small firms and 992 cooperatives to join a partnership worth Rp 508.2 billion.
Sudwikatmono said that as of last year, 35 business groups have already formed partnerships with 64,478 small firms and cooperatives, involving capital of Rp 2.8 trillion.
Astra International again led the pack with existing partnerships valued at Rp 1.6 trillion and involving 783 small and medium-sized firms. The Salim Group has Rp 709.8 billion in 38,932 small firms and 3,884 cooperatives. Gajah Tunggal has a partnership valued at Rp 132.7 billion with one small firm and 74 cooperatives.
President Soeharto witnessed the signing of the partnership commitment document. Aburizal Bakrie of the Bakrie Group represented the 41 large businesses. Moechtar Sany, from the multibusiness cooperative Cipta Bangun Usaha in Lampung, represented the smaller firms and cooperatives.
Soeharto also witnessed the signing of commitment document on human resources development and transfer of technology. T.P. Rachmat of Astra International signed for six large businesses, and Suharman, a small-scale entrepreneur from West Sumatra, represented the smaller firms and cooperatives.
Soeharto's son, Bambang Trihatmodjo, who is also chairman of the Bimantara Group, praised the drive as a way to transfer technology and management skills from large entities to smaller businesses.
Eka Tjipta Widjaja, chairman of the Sinar Mas Group, called on people with annual net incomes of Rp 100 million (US$44,520) or more to heed the government's call to donate 2 percent of their income to the government-sponsored poverty alleviation program.
"Those who do not want to donate have no morality -- including foreign investors here. They should realize...they earn a living here. If they do not donate 2 percent of their incomes, they should be ashamed," Eka said after the ceremony. (rid)