Ministry of Industry encourages government agencies to spend on domestic products

In particular, the President ordered to spend Rp400 trillion in 2022 for domestic products and MSMEs

Solo (ANTARA) - The Ministry of Industry (Kemenperin) encourages government agencies to shop for domestic products to boost economic growth.

"The President in a working meeting said that we must love our own products. Moreover, during this pandemic the movement of goods is not easy, so the President hopes that we can reduce our dependence on imports," said Head of the Center for Increasing the Use of Domestic Products (P3DN Center) at the Ministry of Industry, Nila. Kumalasari at the Socialization of the P3DN Program to Increase the Use of Domestic Products to Support Regional Economic Growth in Solo, Central Java, Tuesday.

With this effort, according to him, it is hoped that it will reduce the number of imports of goods that can actually be met by domestic industries.

"Specifically, the President ordered to spend IDR 400 trillion in 2022 for domestic products and MSMEs," said Nila.

He said that in this year's budget, which is valued at more than Rp. 1,000 trillion, there are goods and capital expenditures that can be optimized for the purchase of domestic products of Rp. 532.5 trillion.

"This means that if the government asks to spend Rp. 400 trillion, it means that 75 percent of the APBD is absorbed for domestic products and MSMEs. In the law (UU) it has been stated that it is mandatory for all ministries, institutions, SKPD, BUMN, and BUMD to use domestic products. ," he said.

"The economic recovery is also going faster," said Nila.

Regarding this, his party is optimistic that the domestic industry will be able to meet market needs as long as there is demand.

"If there is no demand , the industry will not grow. If there is demand , we believe the industry is ready," said Nila.

Deputy for Law and Dispute Resolution from the Government Goods/Services Procurement Policy Institute (LKPP) Setya Budi Arijanta said that in 2021 the realization of domestic industrial spending was still low, at less than 31 percent of Rp. 1,200 trillion.

"The provisions on government spending are clear, if the needs of all local governments can be met by domestic products, then imports are not allowed. For the quality of domestic products, we learn from China and Korea. , we have to educate the public," he said.

Surakarta Mayor Gibran Rakabuming Raka said there are several superior industrial products in Solo, including Kiky and a mask factory.

"The readiness of MSMEs to meet government spending, we encourage procurement, we'll see later this year. For example, the priority is the education sector, ATK for schools is the easiest," he said.

Cars smuggled by illegal Burmese are frequent in Thailand

218 illegal Burmese nationals arrested on February 19, 2022 on the border road in Pakok Khiri Kham District

A woman was killed and 17 others were injured when a car carrying Burmese migrant workers collided with a Thai dance troupe in the early hours of February 19 in Chai Nat Township, Manawram Province, Thailand.

The Bangkok Post reported on February 19 that 16 people, including 13 Burmese migrant workers, were injured in the crash, which occurred at the Khun Sam Phaw intersection on Phaholyothin Road in Manawram District.

The driver of the car carrying the Burmese migrant workers fled and two Burmese men tried to flee, but were arrested by police. It was also reported that two injured migrants were infected with the Kovis virus.

Moe Kyaw, a Thai-based official with the Mae Sot-based Raung Chi Oo Workers' Union, said the Thai government should crack down on suspected smuggling gangs carrying undocumented Burmese migrant workers and deal with the Thai government effectively.

"In our country, when young people go out and work where they think there are job opportunities, they have to work with brokers and cross the border into the interior of Thailand," he said. We can hear the deaths of our migrant workers in that vehicle. These should not happen. Incentives were also used to pay large sums of money. Tragic deaths should not happen. "These things need to be addressed systematically by the people in charge."

As of the second week of February, Thai police had arrested more than 2,000 undocumented Burmese migrant workers and 18 brokers, according to labor activists.

Min Oo, a labor official with the Education and Development Association (FED) in southern Thailand, said that if possible, Burmese migrant workers should not be allowed to enter the country illegally, as there are frequent casualties due to frequent traffic accidents.

"When they enter illegally, the smugglers have to find out where to send them," he said. It depends on the amount of money you get. It doesn't matter what age you are. As you know, once you get into the hands of a broker, you have to go as planned. "If that happens, the driver will leave."

On February 15, a 13-year-old boy was killed when his motorcycle collided with a car carrying about 20 illegal Burmese in Chiang Mai Township, northern Thailand.

On January 20, five Burmese workers were killed in a car accident involving Burmese migrant workers in Sairo Township, Kanchanaburi Province on the Thai-Burmese border.

Undocumented Burmese migrant workers have been the main source of arrests on the Thai-Burmese border, but more recently, Thai migrants have been killed and injured in road accidents. It has come to be.

Thai police have arrested 226 Burmese migrant workers in Thailand on February 19 in the Thai-Burmese border province of Prachuap Khiri Khan, according to the Bangkok Post.

North Korean residents “Disappointing level of special supply for Gwangmyeong Holiday”

Anchor : North Koreans, who have been experiencing economic hardship, had high expectations for a special supply on the occasion of the 80th birthday of Chairman Kim Jong-il this year, but it is known that the level was poor . It is said that there are not many people who have not even received this.

It is pointed out that it is very difficult for North Korea to celebrate the Gwangmyeongseong Festival and the Sun Festival this year, to the extent that, unlike Pyongyang, the provinces are instructed to solve their own special supplies. Reporter Noh Jung-min reports .

There are many residents who did not receive special supplies even in the provinces.

North Korea's residents of Hyesan, Ryanggang Province , delivered the local atmosphere to the RFA ( February 10 ) ahead of the Day of Gwangmyeong ( February 16 ), the birthday of Chairman Kim Jong-il .

A large-scale commemorative meeting, concert, and artistic performance were planned or held , but the special supply that North Koreans expected the most was disappointing, this resident said .

The North Korean resident contacted by RFA through Japan's ' Asia Press ' said through a text message on his cell phone that ' there was no national supply at all ' . He added that the self-supply of each institution and company was too low for a holiday supply .

Then, he said, 'There are a lot of big events being held on this year's Day of the Sun ' , and he said that he had high expectations for this year's Gwangmyeongseong Day and Sun Day special supply .

In particular, he confessed that residents who had a difficult time economically after the border between North Korea and China were closed were very interested in the rations and gifts given by the state on the occasion of the Holy Day of Gwangmyeong.

On the other hand, about the meaning of the Day of Light , he answered, ' I like it because it gives gifts, supplies , and rests rather than really liking that day . '

Rather , he added , ' It's just a follow up if you order it from above ', saying it's annoying because of the special security week following the event 

According to the actual ' Asia Press ' , the special supply of local cities on the occasion of Gwangmyeong Seongjeol this year was lower than expected 

In North Hamgyong Province, soy sauce, soybean paste , soap , and toothpaste were supplied through state-run stores for each institution and company, and only   two days' worth of corn was supplied .  Candy made from corn was distributed to the children, and even this was produced in-house in North Hamgyong Province .

Even in Ryanggang Province, there was no national supply at all. Basic foods such as soy sauce and miso were distributed to each institution and company , but not all residents received it .

Jiro Ishimaru, head of the Osaka office of Asia Press ( February 15 ) told RFA that the Kim Jong-un regime had instructed each province to solve their own special supplies from the beginning .

He said he did not care about the provinces due to financial difficulties.

[ Ishimaru Jiro ] One characteristic of this special supply is that the North Korean authorities had previously instructed Party and administrative agencies in provincial cities to ' solve the special supply for this holiday on their own ' . In a word, there is no national financial input, but since ( Gwangmyeongseongjeol ) is a nationally important national holiday, ( special supply ) must be made .

Kim Hye-young, a defector from North Korea who recently heard news from her family in North Korea (February 14), also told RFA that ' I did n't hear that my family received special supplies for the Holiday of Gwangmyeong ' . Rather, she was asked to ' send the money because it is too difficult for me financially ' .

[ Kim Hye -young ( pseudonym )] I haven't heard of a special supply. It's too hard to send me money, but the commission offered by the middle broker was 52 % . I can't send money because it's so ridiculous . Even people living in the border area now say that it is very difficult to do business and that prices and remittance fees are too high .

The reason that all the residents did not receive the special supply was that the local government distributed it only to the workers of the enterprises.

Those who did not go to the establishment for business or other reasons were excluded from the distribution, but Kim's family is also unable to go to the establishment .

Representative Ishimaru pointed out that that is proof that the North Korean economy is very difficult. 

[ Ishimaru Jiro ] Some people do not go to work. For example , there was no special supply for those engaged in business or the retired generation . On the other hand , workers who go to work at enterprises are people who are under the control of the North Korean authorities . Giving special supplies only to these people gives me a sense of will to strengthen and maintain North Korea's traditional means of governing . I thought that maybe I could not afford it financially .

North Korea held the Central Reporting Conference in Samjiyon, North Korea, on the 15th to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Gwangmyeong's Day in the presence of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. / AP

Due to economic difficulties , special supply is concentrated only in Pyongyang 

On the other hand, it is known that this special supply for the Gwangmyeong Seongjeol is very different between Pyongyang and the provinces .

A fairly generous holiday supply was made to the citizens of Pyongyang, but it is said that goods made in China that arrived by freight train in January were distributed first to the citizens of Pyongyang and did not go down to the provinces .

Former US State Department special envoy for North Korean human rights Robert King ( February 15 ) told RFA that all North Koreans are unable to celebrate the Feast of Gwangmyeong due to various difficult circumstances, including food shortages and the prevention of the corona virus .

[ Former Special Envoy Robert King ] This year's Day of Gwangmyeong is an important day for establishing the legitimacy of the leader by praising his grandfather and father to Kim Jong-un, but it is not a good time to celebrate the Feast of Gwangmyeong because of various internal problems, including food shortages . In particular , North Koreans do not think they have enough food to enjoy the holidays .

Benjamin Kazef Silverstein, a visiting researcher at the Stimson Center in the US ( February 10 ) also participated in the RFA

He said that the difficult economic situation may have affected the Gwangmyeongseong Day, and the recent resumption of freight train operation may have increased the number of items to celebrate the day, but it is not certain whether it actually made a big difference to the lives of the residents .

North Koreans visited the statues of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il on Mansudae Hill on the 16th to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Gwangmyeongseongjeol. / AP 

Jiro Ishimaru, the CEO, analyzed that the Kim Jong-un regime focused on Pyongyang, the core base of the Gwangmyeong Holiday special supply system during an economically difficult time.

[ CEO Ishimaru Jiro ] In the provinces, people have been informed that there is no state support this time, and all Chinese goods that came in through Sinuiju in January are to be given as special supplies from Pyongyang citizens, and they say that they do not come to the provinces. It is said that there were explanations by the officers. Since the Kim Jong-un regime cannot but give at least to the citizens of Pyongyang on the nation's greatest holiday, I think that he has decided to give a lot to the people of Pyongyang, the base and core city of the Kim Jong-un regime, through national selection and concentration.

Andrei Lankov, a professor at Kookmin University in Korea, also ( February 11 ) told RFA that it is difficult to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Day of Light and the 110th anniversary of the Day of the Sun , as General Secretary Kim Jong-un hopes for due to the corona quarantine and economic difficulties .

Troy Stangaron, senior director of the US-Korea Economic Research Institute, is hoping that North Koreans will open the border between North Korea and China on the occasion of the Sun. predicted to be .

Reporter Jeong-min Roh, Editor Jung -woo Park , Web Team Kyeong -ha Lee