President Jokowi: Be Vigilant of Global Challenges
President Jokowi delivers directives at the 2022 Leaders’ Meeting of TNI-Polri, Tuesday (03/01) at TNI Headquarters in Cilangkap, East Jakarta. (Photo by: BPMI of Presidential Secretariat/Lukas)
Future global challenges will not be easy to face and will be full of uncertainties just like the current global uncertainties due to the Industrial Revolution 4.0, the COVID-19 pandemic, and other global issues, according to President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo.
“Global uncertainties will spread to growing uncertainties in every country in the world that we never calculated. All of those problems emerge now,” the President said in his directives at the Leaders’ Meeting of the Indonesian National Defense Forces (TNI) and the Indonesian National Police (Polri) at TNI Headquarters in Cilangkap, East Jakarta, Tuesday (03/01).
According to the President, one of the challenges is container scarcity due to trade imbalance at the global market.
“If the price of container increases, freight cost rises. What does it mean? Prices of goods will rise as well. What does it mean if prices increase? Consumers will buy goods at a higher cost than usual. Be careful with this,” he said, adding that inflation and food shortage that cause surging food prices are also a global challenge in the current era.
“Do not take these matters lightly. What does it mean? The people who want to buy goods must pay more. This is where challenges of uncertainties appear,” he said.
The President also addressed the issue of energy scarcity that triggers price surges, adding that one of the causal factors is the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict.
“Back then, before the war the price increased due to scarcity and it increased again due to the war. Now the price per barrel is already above US$100. Before, it only cost US$50-60. Every country experiences fuel price increase, LPG price increase,” he said.
The President also stated that fuel price surge eventually leads to producer price rise, underscoring that global uncertainties will cause uneasy challenges.
“[People] want to buy raw materials, the prices increased. They want to buy fuel, the price rose. What does it mean? Production cost grew, factory prices skyrocketed, then when goods are sent to markets, consumer prices will also increase. This is the chain of effects,” he said.
On that occasion, the President also expressed hope that the TNI and Polri can work comprehensively both in macro and micro scales on the ground.
“You cannot work merely in a macro scale. That is not possible. That is not possible to solve problems. Do work in both macro and micro scales. If you know the macro scale, you have to work on the micro scale on the ground as well,” he remarked. (BPMI of Presidential Secretariat/UN) (DH/EP)
