JAKARTA, Riau Province is encouraged to seriously work on green economic opportunities. According to an economist from the University of Riau (UNRI), Dahlan Tampubolon, this is one strategy to keep Riau's economic conditions stable amidst global economic turmoil.
"The opportunity is great, because Riau has abundant natural resources to develop green economic sectors," he said in Pekanbaru, recently.
According to data published by Databoks Katadata, the area of oil palm plantations in Indonesia in 2023 will reach 16.8 million hectares. In 2024, the area of national oil palm cover will increase to 17.3 million hectares. Meanwhile, data published by SPKS, the total area of oil palm plantations in Riau is 3.38 million hectares in 2024.
These natural resources are what Dahlan Tampubolon meant that must be developed as a source of raw materials to work on green economic opportunities, such as palm oil waste for biogas, and the development of digital-based MSMEs.
Dahlan is confident that the green economy can be the key to diversifying Riau's economy amidst the challenges of the global economic slowdown and climate change.
"Riau needs to be careful with challenges such as China's economic slowdown, climate change that has an impact on the agricultural sector, and the Value Added Tax (VAT) policy that has the potential to suppress people's purchasing power," he said.
According to him, the green economic transformation should not only increase Riau's competitiveness, but also strengthen regional economic resilience amidst uncertainty.
"Innovation in the management of natural resources and technology is the key to Riau remaining relevant in the ever-changing economic dynamics," he explained.
In addition, collaboration between stakeholders is considered an important element in realizing inclusive economic growth. The government, business world, and society are encouraged to work together to create new sustainable opportunities.
Economic diversification is an urgent step to reduce Riau's dependence on the palm oil sector. This step can include the development of the tourism, services, and creative industry sectors as new pillars of the regional economy.
Dahlan said that the projection of national economic growth in 2025 is estimated to reach 5.3-5.5%. Riau Province is only optimistic about growing up to 4.3%. However, he reminded the region to remain vigilant against a number of global risks.
"As a region close to foreign countries, Riau is most affected by global economic uncertainty," said Dahlan Tampubolon.
