Jokowi's Demand in Automotive Exports Hampered by COVID-19

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - One year into Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's second term presidency, there is at least one aspect that did not meet initial expectations he established soon after his inauguration, which is in vehicle exports. 

Back in December 2019, President Jokowi requested the domestic automotive industry to export one million vehicles by 2024, which is a tall order, considering Indonesia had only managed to export 300,000 vehicles. 

“Announce this to the automotive industry, that one million vehicles at its minimum should be exported,” said the president at the time. 

Citing Bisnis.com, the president’s request presents a challenge for the national automotive industry as exports have dropped in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The Association of Indonesian Automotive Manufacturers (Gaikindo) recorded that the country’s car (CBU) exports from January to September dropped 35.4 percent compared to 2019, with only 155,258 units.

At the same time, the number of car exports in the form of CKD only amounted to 34,722, which is a 90.6 percent drop compared to the same period last year that recorded 370,062 exports. 

“We are projecting this year’s exports to drop by 50 percent, even though we were asked in December 2019 by President Jokowi to increase exports up to 1 million units by 2024,” said Gaikindo chairperson Yohannes Nangoi. 

Read: Industry Minister Says Batik Exports Soar Amid COVID-19 Pandemic

BISNIS