Heaptalk, Jakarta — Indonesia’s Ministry of Cooperatives and SME (KemenKop UKM), through the Special Staff in the Creative Economy Empowerment division, Fiki Satari, admonished TikTok to fulfill the stipulated online trade regulation to dissociate social media with e-commerce platform. This monition is a part of the Ministry of Cooperative and SME response to the return of the TikTok Shop platform, indicated by the strategic collaboration with giant technology corporations GoTo.
In his further statement, Fiki claimed that his party regrets the return of the TikTok Shop platform without any significant transformation, which fulfills the stipulated online trade policy, specifically for online shopping activities and transactions within this social commerce platform. As is well known, Indonesia has banned the operation of the TikTok Shop by passing Minister of Trade Regulation 31 of 2023, which prohibits social commerce platforms from facilitating payment transactions within the same application.
“We have perceived this matter during National Online Shopping Day (Harbolnas) 12.12 and the Buy Local Program. However, TikTok still enables customers to make online transactions on its platform, which is prohibited according to regulations. Social Media is a communication platform, yet they still carry out transactions.” affirmed Fiki
According to him, regulations must ultimately prevail without any notes during the adjustment process, whereby MSME players must also follow this critical point. If they violate the existing rules and permits of the country, the authority will impose sanctions based on their infraction. For this reason, the Ministry of Cooperatives and SME will coordinate with the Ministry of Trade and the Ministry of Investment/BPKM as the authority to mitigate this problem.
“We comprehend the space of socialization and adaptation necessities. In a technology journey, we know about trials such as the User Acceptance Test (UAT) to test performance, function, and security. However, if the journey is in the trial stage, we suggest the company conduct the process internally in the early phase. Hence, we will mitigate this point,” added Fiki.
On the other hand, regarding the promotional activity in MSMEs on the TikTok platform, Fiki looks forward to the Buy Local program continuing to be strengthened to empower local MSMEs. Through this endeavor, Indonesia is expected to enable MSMEs, reduce the issue of discrimination against local brands, and avoid predatory pricing.
“The digital platform support for local MSMEs is a critical factor. The digital economy is expected to enhance the new economy and accelerate MSMEs from upstream to downstream.” Fiki concluded.
