North Sumatra Governor allocates Rp50 billion in capital assistance for MSMEs

Medan (ANTARA) - North Sumatra Governor Bobby Nasution has allocated Rp50 billion in capital assistance for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) next year.

“For instance, through Bank Sumut, we have already distributed business assistance with very low interest rates. Next year, we plan to disburse Rp50 billion in business assistance for MSMEs,” Bobby said after attending the 2026 Bursa Wirausaha Unggulan at the Universitas Sumatera Utara (USU) Auditorium in Medan on Thursday.

The Governor said the programme has been prepared by the North Sumatra Provincial Government to strengthen the entrepreneurship ecosystem and support the national target of creating 10 million new entrepreneurs.

Bobby noted that North Sumatra has approximately 1.4 million MSME units, with an entrepreneurship ratio of 4.1 percent according to 2025 data from the provincial Cooperatives and SMEs Office.

Of that figure, around 98.9 percent are micro and small enterprises in North Sumatra.

“Our workforce numbers more than eight million. Of that total, around five percent have not yet entered the world of work or business. This is our homework,” Bobby said at the event, which was also attended by Minister of MSMEs Maman Abdurrahman.

For this reason, the North Sumatra Provincial Government is committed to providing support, particularly in expanding access to capital for business actors.

“When it comes to our culinary sector, there are really only two options: delicious or extremely delicious. But in its development, most of the demands relate to capital,” Bobby explained.

In addition to financing access for MSMEs, the Governor also emphasised that MSME actors also need training and coaching through business incubation programmes.

“The coaching covers business management, business consulting, financing facilitation, and product promotion so that businesses can develop sustainably,” Bobby said.

Minister of MSMEs Maman Abdurrahman appreciated the commitment of North Sumatra Governor Bobby Nasution to strengthening the MSME sector in North Sumatra.

According to him, the Ministry of MSMEs is currently running the Productive Prokesra (People’s Welfare Programme) as a national strategy to strengthen the entrepreneurship system.

“This programme provides training and helps the public access financing. The most important thing is that MSME actors can manage their finances well,” Maman said.