Bank Mandiri Boosts Economy by Helping Mold New Entrepreneurs

Jakarta, 13 January 2014 - Bank Mandiri will hold an expo and awards ceremonies for the Mandiri Young Entrepreneur (WMM) and Mandiri Young Technopreneur (MYT) programs to help develop entrepreneurship in Indonesia. The events, which will take place between 15 and 19 January at the Senayan Sports Stadium, will be attended by 136 young entrepreneurs and Mandiri mentoring partners.

Bank Mandiri Director of Finance & Strategy Pahala N Mansury said that the WMM and MYT programs were aimed at encouraging young people to get involved in entrepreneurship so as to reduce pressure on the jobs market.

"We are confident that with the increasing number of entrepreneurs that are emerging, the living standards of those around them will also be boosted. It will certainly stimulate the economy of Indonesia," said Pahala N Mansury.

It is expected that the Young Entrepreneur Expo 2014 will be attended by 50,000 visitors made up of both students and members of the general public. Bank Mandiri believes that the expo will provide a forum where all of the stakeholders, including members of the public and academics, can come together to share their views on the development of entrepreneurship in Indonesia.

Students visiting the expo can also attend creative industry talk shows that highlight different themes each day. On 16 January 2014, the talk show will feature Jake Wiradisurya (founder Valadoo Tour & Travel), Denny Santoso (Startupbusiness.com) and Christian Sugiono (Malesbanget.com) with the theme being Digital Entrepreneurship. Subsequently on 18 January, the talk show will focus on creative entrepreneurship and feature speakers Leonard Theosubrata (Interior & Fashion Design), Bondan Prakoso (musician) and Wahyu Aditya (Hellofest). Finally, on 19 January, the talk show will showcase Women's Entrepreneurship and will be hosted by Rizka Romadhona (Lapis Bogor), Jenahara (Hijabers Community), Anton Wirjono (CEO of The Goods Dept), Mira Lesmana (Miles Production) and Merry Riana (author & motivator).

This year will once again see a number of Young Entrepreneur Workshops being held. It is expected that these will be attended by 8,200 participants, consisting of 5,200 students and academics from 50 public and private universities in Greater Jakarta, along with 3,000 special invitees drawn from IWAPI, Dekranas, WMM alumni, start-up entrepreneurs assisted the Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs and Bank Mandiri Mentoring Partners. The workshops will offer participants the opportunity to exchange ideas with leading speakers such as Bill Reichert of Garage Ventures, Santi Pusposutjipto of Samudera Indonesia, Dondi Hananto of Kinara Indonesia, Josephine Komara of The Bin House and Svida Alisjahbana of Femina Group.

According to Pahala, the interest shown by young people in entrepreneurship is increasing, as seen from the spike in WMM and MYT entries in 2013. A total of 6,725 students from 516 universities across Indonesia took part in the WMM competition. Of these, 54 made it through to the finals, consisting of 26 participants from the student category and 28 participants from the alumni and graduate categories. Meanwhile, the MYT competition drew a field of 837 teams, of which 10 made it through to the finals.

The WMM and MYT programs form part of the government's National Entrepreneurship Movement (GKN). Pahala said that the entrepreneurship movement in Indonesia was intensifying as a result of a concerted drive by concerned citizens and the government. The movement had the potential to create a positive environment that would encourage increased instrument in the community.

"The WMM and MYT programs are not only a source of pride for the bank, but also for the people of Indonesia, a country blessed with creative young people who have the capacity to contribute to the surrounding community. We are encouraged to see that increasing numbers of young people are becoming job creators, thereby helping set Indonesian economic growth on a much better course," said Pahala.


distributed by