The Association of Indonesian Fiber and Filament Yarn Producers (APSyFI) calls on retailers to better support domestic products, considering the importance of supporting the local industry. This request emerged following a protest from the Indonesian Global Brand Retail Entrepreneurs Association (Apregindo) against the implementation of new import regulations issued by the government.
The General Chair of APSyFI, Redma Gita Wirawasta, highlighted that since the enactment of this regulation, the performance trend of the textile and textile product (TPT) industry sector is heading in a positive direction. He emphasized that all stakeholders in the national textile industry agreed to maintain the continuity of this regulation without any changes or delays.
Redma emphasized that this regulation was in line with President Jokowi's direction in October the previous year, which emphasized the importance of controlling imports to prevent mass layoffs. This import regulation aims to encourage the replacement of imported products with local products.
Responding to Apregindo's complaints regarding technical regulations (Pertek) which were considered burdensome to the import process, Redma emphasized that this matter should be handled based on existing regulations. He emphasized that Apregindo members have Import Approval (PI) until the end of 2024, so they still have sufficient time to complete 2025 import matters.
Furthermore, Redma urged retailers to better support local products and prioritize domestically made goods. He emphasized that local brands also have quality that is not inferior to imported products, and need to be given the opportunity to compete in the market.
On the other hand, the General Chair of the Indonesian Textile Association (API), Jemmy Kartiwa, welcomed the implementation of this Minister of Trade Regulation and assessed it as a very important step for the domestic textile industry. He emphasized that the change in regulations from post-border to border would help in tightening supervision over imports of finished goods in the textile sector.
"At the very least, this regulation provides an opportunity for the domestic textile industry to rise and be able to compete with legally imported products. This will increase the competitiveness of the domestic industry in the global market," stressed Jemmy.
API also expressed its gratitude to the government, especially the Ministry of Trade (Kemendag) and the Ministry of Industry (Kemenperin), for the full support provided until this regulation was passed.
Thus, the hope of this textile association is that the government and industry players can continue to support domestic products, so that the Indonesian textile industry can continue to develop and compete globally.