Digitalization became even more important after the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020, as people stayed at home and businesses lost their walk-in customers.

One of them was Tissa Aunila, a Jakarta-based chocolate maker who suffered a 60 percent decline in revenue due to the pandemic. To save her business, she quickly switched to online sales via our e-commerce platform Tokopedia, a move that has increased her revenue by more than 50 percent compared to pre-pandemic levels. For her, there is no going back to the “old ways” even when people started returning to her store and dessert cafe in South Jakarta. Digitalization has enabled her business to not just survive, but thrive.

That same year, research conducted by the University of Indonesia's Institute of Demographics (LD FEB UI) showed that the GoFood online food-delivery platform was used by 120,000 new microbusiness owners whose earnings were impacted during the pandemic. Our tool became a bridge to their first entrepreneurial venture, as well as the digital economy.

If further proof were needed of the growing importance of digital technology for economic growth, a 2020 McKinsey report showed that the pandemic has accelerated rates of customer interactions in the digital space by at least three years. At GoTo, we are determined not to let this progress stagnate.

Public-private partnership is key

Close collaboration between the public and private sectors is vital if the whole country is to reap the full benefit of digitalization.

In this regard, GoTo is fortunate to be based in Indonesia, where digitalization is a government priority. The Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises Ministry aims for 30 million MSMEs to enter the digital economy by 2024, almost double the 19.5 million we have today.

MSMEs are the cornerstone of the GoTo business. As of early October this year, we have over 15 million MSME partners in our ecosystem, and this number will continue to grow. This growth is the result of the Indonesian government’s continued investments in infrastructure, internet affordability and legislations that protect users, coupled with the entrepreneurial spirit of many Indonesians and the platforms that we have built for them. By working together, as has been the case in Indonesia, we can create a digital ecosystem that is convenient, affordable and secure for all.

With so much to gain from digitalization, the private sector must work to create digital platforms that connect people with products and services they need across the nation while governments implement policies and recovery programs to create stronger, more resilient societies.

Next frontier: environmentally sustainable business

At the same time, we have always believed that progress must go hand-in-hand with building a sustainable future. To this end, GoTo has committed to transition 100 percent of our driver partners’ fleet to electric vehicles (EVs) by 2030 with the support of our joint-venture company, Electrum. This effort supports the Indonesian government’s target to reach 31.89 percent reduction in carbon emissions by 2030, which is to be achieved in part by transition to EVs. This conversion also benefits Gojek driver-partners by way of lowering their running and maintenance costs by up to 30 percent.

Since the start of our trial in February, we have surpassed 4 million kilometers in trips, and net savings of more than 340 tonnes of carbon dioxide. This saving is equivalent to more than 10,000 new trees planted. Together with our now 100 percent renewable energy-powered headquarters and a comprehensive ESG framework, this commitment sets the tone for our sustainable business operations going forward.

Today, delegates attending the Group of Twenty (G20)-related conferences in Bali can experience Electrum EVs for themselves, operating as official shuttles. In close coordination with the Indonesian government, we are also working toward making the total cost of ownership of two-wheel EVs more competitive as well as putting in place a battery-swap ecosystem -- all for the purpose of seeing a lot more EVs on Indonesia’s streets, ultimately replacing combustion-engine vehicles in the future.

This is just one example of how innovation and, perhaps more importantly, public-private sector collaboration can help to solve some of our most pressing challenges, aligned to the G20 agenda. GoTo’s leading position as one of Indonesia’s major digital ecosystems enables us to play a part in this huge undertaking in partnership with other industry players and the government.

Empowering progress for all in our ecosystem has been core to GoTo’s business since day one, and digital transformation and energy transition are central to our mission. So, even as the heads of state, government representatives, officials and delegates return home from the summit, we hope that the spirit of empowerment that pushes all of us forward remains kindled and stronger than ever. 

May this be a rallying call for our public and private sectors. We must recover together, so that we can recover stronger -- or, as we say at GoTo: if we want to go far, we must go together.

This article will also publish in our G20 digest special edition

The writer is from CEO of GOTO Group