Investment in the textile industry and textile products (TPT) sector in the first quarter of 2023 increased, compared to the fourth quarter of 2022. This was stated by the Head of the Industrial Vocational Education Development Center of the Ministry of Industry (Kemenperin), Emmy Suryandari, while attending the Xth Congress of IKA ITT-STTT-STTT Polytechnic in Bandung, Saturday (29/7/2023). According to him, the textile industry and textile products are still one of the manufacturing sectors that support the Indonesian economy.

The increase in investment in the TPT sector, he said, must be accompanied by improvements in human resources (HR). One that plays a role in the development of human resources in the textile industry is the STTT Polytechnic.

Vocational schools such as the STTT Polytechnic must produce graduates who are able to adapt to industrial developments, especially in the digitalization 4.0 era.

"The industrial sector is now faced with an industrial revolution and this must be adopted by all parties, both the ministry of industry and industry players," Emmy said.

STTT Polytechnic alumni, he said, have an important role in business networking because it is undeniable that the campus graduates already have good positions in government and companies.

"So seniors from this campus who are now in various companies or industries must be able to open up wider opportunities for students or graduates who will become human resources for the TPT industry in the future," he said.

Director of the Textile, Leather and Footwear Industry, Directorate General of Chemical, Pharmaceutical and Textile Industries (IKFT)

The Ministry of Industry, Adie Rochmanto Pandiangan said, during the Covid-19 pandemic the Indonesian TPT industry was indeed under pressure. However, this sector is slowly starting to show improvement.

"The textile industry is still one of the national strategic sectors. The government even wants this textile industry to be among the top five in the world by 2030," said Adie.

It is this human resource need that must be discussed by all sectors so that the TPT industry can get a reliable and expert workforce in their fields so that products from the domestic industry can also compete with other countries.

"Global confusion regarding textiles is apparently not felt in other countries such as Korea and Taiwan. It can exist because the ecosystem has been formed, and this is what we are trying to prepare," he said.

Meanwhile, Chairperson of IKA ITT-STTT-STTT Polytechnic Riady Madyadinata added, the problems in the textile industry are indeed various. The decline in production volume was not only in West Java, but in almost all regions that have TPT industrial areas.

For this reason, synergy is needed between policy makers, companies and textile experts so that this sector is able to grow again after being hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.

"We will also try to talk with all interested stakeholders so that the textile industry does not continue to decline, but there must be an increase," said Riady.

Even so with the Secretary General of IKA, Ananta Dwihasto, who said that the strengthening of the textile industry must also be strengthened by increasing the capability of domestic human resources.

"This means that textile factories are not only encouraged to produce quality products, but also to prepare superior human resources," said Ananta.