Economist Ronny Sasmita says broad creative-economy figures do not show how much Indonesia earns from digital services.
Indonesia needs more precise data on creative-services exports to identify which activities can generate foreign revenue, economist Ronny P. Sasmita told ANTARA.
Producing creative work is not enough to reach international markets, he said. Many creators lack business skills, foreign-language proficiency, global marketing and project-management experience. Sasmita also pointed to financing and intellectual-property commercialization, noting that banks can struggle to value intangible assets as collateral.
He called for better access to distributors, agents, digital platforms, business-matching opportunities and international networks. More detailed statistics, he said, would help identify which service segments earn the most and where support is needed.
Indonesia’s Ministry of Creative Economy reported that exports from the creative sector reached $26.68 billion in January–October 2025. That aggregate includes goods exports and does not separately show digital services. The sector employed an estimated 27.4 million people in 2025, according to Statistics Indonesia.