Prasetiya Mulya vows to help small firms
Prasetiya Mulya vows to help small firms
JAKARTA (JP): The Prasetiya Mulya Foundation vowed yesterday
to join hands with small-scale businesses and cooperatives
through a partnership program which will involve management
education, training and consultation.
Sofyan Wanandi, a foundation executive, said yesterday that
the program will be launched on National Cooperative Day on June
12. The program, he said, represents a commitment made by large-
scale entrepreneurs in the foundation to support small-scale
businesses and cooperatives.
"We feel that it is not enough to merely allocate one percent
of our shares to small businesses and cooperatives, as the
government stipulates, or provide them only with training,"
Sofyan said.
President Soeharto in 1990 urged large-scale entrepreneurs to
set aside one percent of their shares for cooperatives in the
spirit of partnership.
As of last year, 175 companies had responded, rendering a
total of 69.2 million shares to 1,711 cooperatives.
Sofyan said that the group intends to support small-scale
businesses and cooperatives "from zero" and develop them until
they grow strong enough to become partners.
Financing
Sofyan, who was accompanied by other Prasetiya Mulya
executives including businessmen Sukamdani S. Gitosardjono,
Ciputra, Palgunadi Tatit Setyawan and Usman Admadjaja, said that
for 1995-1996 the foundation intends to involve 2,000 to 3,000
executives of small-scale business and cooperatives in the
program, which will be called "The 2000 Partnership Program".
For this year, he said, Rp 3 billion (US$1.33 million) will be
allocated to finance the program, which will also include
meetings and discussions between small-scale entrepreneurs and
conglomerate owners.
Sofyan, who is also president of the Gemala group of
companies, said that because the program is aimed at linking big
businesses with smaller ones, "it will strictly be of an economic
nature, where everyone will gain an economic benefit".
"Lately many economic matters have turned political. This is
not our intention because establishing partnerships is purely an
economic matter," he said, adding that the foundation expects
other large enterprises to follow course.
Yesterday's press conference was also attended by several
small-scale business and cooperative executives, who have already
participated in a pilot project of the program.
The program will involve eight industrial sectors -- retail or
mini-market businesses, food and beverages industries,
horticulture, leather, small-scale industries, garment, services
and construction enterprises.
The large-scale companies participating in the program will
include Hero, Matahari Group, Indomarco, Golden Truly, ABC
Central Food, Sinar Mas, Astra Group, Indomobil, Honda, Yamaha,
Argo Pantes, Sandratex, Jaya Group, Indokisar, Jababeka and Duta
Pertiwi.(pwn)