Among the factors contributing to the low targets and stagnant exports, said Eximbank executive director Sinthya Roesly, was the trade war between China and the United States. But she argued that the conflict could potentially give room for a global market shift to Indonesia for industries like textiles and fisheries, while tapping into non-traditional markets like Africa and the Middle East where opportunities are “plenty”, she said.

Besides, she said the yearly target could misrepresent their main objective. As a state-owned lender, Eximbank prides itself on its contribution to the economy, she added, ranging from boosting gross domestic product (GDP) to nationwide exports.

According to its latest annual report, Eximbank had increased its assets by 8.69 percent to Rp 120.07 trillion year-on-year (yoy) in 2018 while reaping an export growth of 19.04 percent to Rp 184 million yoy. She also claimed that the lender had contributed around 5 percent to national exports.

“The targets are for commercial banks,” Sinthya said. “We should focus instead on how much of a multiplier effect we could give to exporters and increase their capacity to compete in the global market,” she said.

To show her team's support, she quoted the lender’s recent plan to expand its funding in financial technology (fintech) for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which she claims have given them wider access to financing in a short period of time and at a relatively low cost. She said that currently, only 15 percent of clients were categorized as SMEs.

She claimed to have helped at least 1000 SMEs to enter the e-commerce scene since last year, through platforms such as e-Bay and Amazon. Their training program ranges from product packaging, online export mechanisms to administrative affairs.

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