The PIKA-PI (Association of Employees' Wives of Pupuk Indonesia) Group visited several MSMEs (Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises) under the supervision of PT Pupuk Sriwidjaja Palembang (Pusri) in Palembang, South Sumatra, on March 23 and 24, 2024. This visit coincided with the Ramadan Safari program of the Pupuk Indonesia Group and also represented the commitment of the PIKA-PI Group to promote the progress and development of MSMEs until they can compete in the international market.

The Chairman of the PIKA-PI Group, Tata Rahmad Pribadi, stated that the PIKA-PI Group, together with the Pupuk Indonesia Group, is strongly committed to fostering MSMEs, especially those involved in traditional textiles or fabrics such as those around the operational areas of Pusri.

"We all know that Pusri is a pioneer in the fertilizer and petrochemical industry in Indonesia, and it has a strong commitment to the development of textile MSMEs alongside its operational activities. Meanwhile, the textiles developed by MSMEs under Pusri's supervision are the legacy of the Sriwijaya Kingdom, which is the oldest Buddhist kingdom in the archipelago," said Tata.

He added that this fostering is aimed at elevating textile MSMEs to a higher level by expanding their market, not only domestically but also internationally.

"This fostering is done by providing capital loans and enhancing competencies so that MSMEs can produce competitive products at the national and global levels. To attract the global market, we also encourage the MSMEs under our supervision to use natural dyes. The environment is currently a global issue," Tata explained.

Furthermore, fostering is also done by involving these MSMEs in various exhibitions, especially those on a global scale, and collaborating with outstanding designers in the country.

As a tangible manifestation of attention to textile MSMEs, the program of visiting several textile MSMEs supervised by Pusri is one of the activities in the first-ever Ramadan Safari of the Pupuk Indonesia Group. "The PIKA-PI Group is directly involved in this series of events, participating by visiting supervised MSMEs. We hope these visits will be a form of attention that can motivate MSME players to continue innovating," he added.

The six MSMEs visited include Cek Romlah Songket, which focuses on producing woven songket fabrics typical of Palembang. Songket fabric is one of the attractions for tourists both domestic and international. Since becoming partners, this MSME has started receiving orders and delivering songket fabrics outside the city and abroad.

The next visit was to KC Haris Jaya, which specializes in producing woven fabrics such as blongsong, blongket, tajung, and jumputan, which are typical fabrics of Palembang. Then there's Jami Collection, where this MSME innovates jumputan fabrics combined with ecoprint motifs, weaving, batik, and others.

The fourth MSME visited by the PIKA-PI Group is Rumah Kain, which collaborates with various other MSME products based on batik and woven fabrics in Palembang. Meanwhile, on the second day, the PIKA-PI Group also visited Nadia Collection, Pipit Songket, and Aditya Jumputan, which also develop songket fabric businesses.

"We see that the MSME products supervised by Pupuk Sriwidjaja Palembang that we have visited are of high quality and have the potential to appear in national and international events, such as Jakarta Fashion Week, which is one of the largest fashion events in Indonesia and internationally," Tata concluded.