TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises Minister Teten Masduki said the working capital aid for micro-enterprises or cash aid program for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) which is called productive presidential aid has been distributed to 8.6 million MSMEs from the initial target of 9.8 million recipients.

“Of the budget Rp15.36 trillion for the total target of 12.8 million business players and 9.8 million in the initial target, the realization of the aid distribution has reached 88.11 percent or 8.6 million business players,” said Teten in a press conference in Jakarta, Wednesday, May 5, 2021.

Teten ensured that the government would continue to distribute the aid until Eid al-Fitr this year as it highly affected the people’s purchasing power in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We will continue to reach the target until Eid because I think this also boosts purchasing power in the community,” he added.

He explained that the MSME economy began to recover in line with improving household and government consumption from the fourth quarter of 2020 to the first quarter of 2021.

Household consumption jumped from minus 3.61 percent in Q4 of 2020 to minus 2.23 percent in Q1 of 2021, while government consumption rose from 1.76 percent in Q4 of 2020 to 2.96 percent in Q1 of 2021.

The government also continued to provide interest subsidies for MSMEs to ensure that they survive and start recovering in line with rising purchasing power.

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ANTARA