RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta – The current global geopolitical crisis has disrupted global supply chains, causing stock shortages in a number of countries. Responding to this situation, Trade Minister, Budi Susanto, stated that he would take advantage of this opportunity through Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

When met at his office after the inauguration of the Public Electric Vehicle Charging Station (SPKLU) on Thursday, 5 March 2026, Budi said that Indonesian MSMEs have the opportunity to fill the market in countries that are experiencing supply shortages. However, he emphasized the importance of market surveys to ensure the security of trade transactions.

“So, in fact, there is a gap, a void. When a market in another country is not supplied to another country, the supplier has been empty. So, we want to take advantage of that. The empty areas. But we also have to be careful in considering whether we have surveyed properly whether the area is indeed greatly affected,” Budi stated.

He said the government continues to intensify its business matching programs for MSMEs. The goal is for Indonesian local products to quickly replace the role of global suppliers that are currently hindered. Currently, countries in Southeast Asia and Africa are the main targets.

The Minister added, “Now the business matching program with MSMEs is finally being directed to those countries. Well, it has already started, and last January the transactions amounted to US$4 million. Now in February, we met with the Director General and mapped out countries such as Southeast Asia and Africa, which we will include to fill the gap.”

On the other hand, the government also plans to discuss with exporters to map out obstacles in the field. This includes anticipating disruptions in the supply of raw materials for domestic industries that still depend on imports.

“Yes, we are anticipating it, but so far the plan is to meet with exporters tomorrow to discuss the problems. I want to know the technical details, where the problems lie for exporters,” Budi said.