TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Vaksin.com cybersecurity expert Alfons Tanujaya believes U.S. President Donald Trump's new trade tariff policy could be used by Indonesia to promote independence in the digital sector. Trump's new regulations affect Indonesia's retail export sector to the U.S.
"It does not take into account the digital sector, where America has an advantage over the entire world," said Alfons when contacted by Tempo on Monday, April 7, 2025.
Trump announced the import tariff policy on Wednesday, April 2. He imposed a minimum tariff of 10 percent on all products entering the U.S. from all countries, including 32 percent from Indonesia. The new tariffs also impact various trading partner countries of Indonesia, including those involved in the electronic and digital sectors, such as China, Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea.
As for reciprocal or retaliatory tariffs, which are now set higher, Trump claimed it as a response to several trading partner countries, including Indonesia. Additional tariffs on products of Indonesian origin are predicted to trigger a decrease in Indonesia's exports to the U.S.
Alfons sees this as an opportunity for Indonesia to develop local digital industries. So far, the digital services widely used by the public are made by U.S. entities, such as Google Search, Maps, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Twitter, Netflix, and cloud services.
"Government should encourage domestic digital services instead of encouraging foreign digital services to flourish," he said.
Alfons also emphasizes the importance of adopting open-source-based digital services to reduce dependence on a single country. He acknowledges that this effort requires commitment and a change in mindset from the bureaucracy. The government focuses on meeting budget spending targets rather than finding the cheapest and most efficient solutions.
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