IslamicTunesNews | 12th WEIF (Word Islamic Economic Forum) Jakarta, Indonesia

 

Indonesian President Joko Widodo made his opening speech.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Malaysian Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Najib Tun Abdul Razak today have opened the 12^th World Islamic Economic Forum that will take place from 2-4 August 2016. There were also 5 global leaders attending the opening ceremony, including: President of Republic Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, President of the Republic of Guinea Alpha Condé, Prime Minister of Sri Lanka Ranil Shriyan Wickremenshinghe, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Trade of the Kingdom of Jordan Dr Jawad Al Anani and President of the Development Bank Islam (IDB) Dr. Ahmad Mohamed Ali.

The 12^th WIEF focuses on the efforts to strengthen decentralization of growth through empowerment of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in order to ensure their international quality standards, and connectivity in the business network as well as access to regional and global investors. The digitization of SMEs should therefore also be expanded in economic activity through adaptation and utilization of ICT development in order to facilitate their interaction with global economic players.

Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are the backbone of the Indonesian economy. About 99% of Indonesia’s businesses are SMEs with more than 98% are dominated by micro companies. These businesses employ over 107.66 million Indonesian and contribute 60.60% to Indonesia GDP. This numbers are increasing with the emerging of creative industry development throughout the country. Decentralisation of growth will therefore empower MSMEs by facilitating their larger participation in the mainstream economy which will ensure inclusive economic development, spurs innovation and improves efficiency, giving enterprises the competitive edge to navigate through the ever-evolving business landscape.