Minister for SMEs: government provides business recovery programme for three provinces

Nationally, approximately 193,000 business operators or debtors affected by disasters in three provinces have been recorded.

Medan (ANTARA) – Indonesia’s Minister for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), Maman Abdurrahman, announced that the government is providing several recovery programmes for business operators affected by disasters in three Sumatran provinces.

“One such programme is the relaxation of People’s Business Credit (KUR) for communities affected by disasters in the Sumatran region,” said Maman following a coordination meeting on Post-Disaster KUR Distribution in Sumatra at the North Sumatra Governor’s Office on Wednesday.

He stated that nationally, approximately 193,000 business operators or debtors affected by disasters in three provinces have been recorded.

These include, Maman continued, West Sumatra, North Sumatra, and Aceh. Of the approximately 193,000 debtors, roughly 44,000 debtors are located in North Sumatra.

“I estimate that figure will still increase, as the mapping process continues until 31 March 2026,” he explained.

Maman outlined several forms of relaxation that will be provided to debtors, including loan repayment extensions, credit restructuring, and interest rate reductions.

“This year the interest rate is waived, they receive zero per cent. So no interest is charged; next year it will rise to three per cent,” Maman emphasised.

The ministry also requested banks to identify which SMEs have been affected by the hydrometeorological disasters in late November 2025.

North Sumatra Governor Bobby Nasution will accelerate the process of synchronising SME data in North Sumatra between local and central government authorities.

According to him, the data is targeted for completion before the end of March 2026 so that assistance programmes can be implemented promptly.

“To that end, we will ensure this week that the data and figures presented, both from us, from local areas, from banks, from Himbara (Association of State-Owned Banks) and the Ministry, are confirmed,” he stated.

The governor also noted that many disaster-affected SMEs in North Sumatra not only lost their homes but also business premises and production equipment.

“Beyond residences, business locations are among the most heavily impacted, and production equipment has suffered significant damage. This is a second major issue following building damage. Indeed, the economy in the disaster-affected areas is currently recovering,” explained Bobby.