REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Marine Affairs and Fisheries Minister Susi Pudjiastuti will boost exports in the marine and fisheries sector so that Indonesia will become number one at least in Southeast Asia.
"Our exports do not match the geographical advantages of our country. Indonesia has the longest coastline in the world, but our exports occupy only the fifth position in Southeast Asia," Susi Pudjiastuti said while attending a working meeting with the Commission IV of the House of Representatives here on Monday.
Describing it a contradiction, Susi stated that the ministry will take reformative measures in the marine and fisheries sector.
She mentioned the vision of President Joko Widodo to make Indonesia a World Maritime Shaft and the marine sector as the future of the nation.
Earlier, the People's Coalition for Fisheries Justice Indonesia (KIARA) remarked that the government should discard the old paradigms that focused on increasing exports, including that of fisheries products, as a yardstick for economic growth.
"Exports as a criterion for economic growth is considered old-school," Secretary General of KIARA Abdul Halim said here on Tuesday.
According to Abdul Halim, economic growth in the field of fisheries should rely on more meaningful indicators than exports.
He remarked the first criterion should be the number of fish processing units (UPI) in coastal villages/districts/cities/ provinces in Indonesia.
"The number of processed products in a single category can be compared against this benchmark at the regional and international levels," he added.
Another criterion, he noted, should be the number of small-scale fisheries connected from upstream to downstream.
According to Kiara, the fisheries products' export target of US$5.4 billion set by the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries for 2015 is not realistic.
"So far, the US dollar has been the base for fish trade target. However, considering declining dollars, the target of US$5.4 billion is not realistic," said Abdul Halim.
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