Jakarta, CNN Indonesia – Businesses are crying out due to the failure to export thousands of tons of kratom. The kratom is being held in containers, awaiting export permits from the government. The Chairman of the Indonesian Kratom Entrepreneurs Association (Pekrindo), Yosef, said that kratom entrepreneurs are hindered by the layered permitting process. In fact, as of December 19, 2024, there were already 57 containers containing 1,525 tons of kratom.
Yosef said that kratom exports must wait for an export permit (PE) from the Ministry of Trade and a surveyor’s report (LS) issued by a government-appointed survey institution.
Meanwhile, surveyors are still in discussion. The government has promised that the surveyor will be decided this month. “We are trying to be cooperative, hopefully this January we can start exporting, and the regulator does have good intentions regarding the issuance of these export regulations,” he said. Yosef added that the government is quite strange. In the midst of a country’s foreign exchange crisis, they are implementing policies that seem to hinder the inflow of foreign exchange.
Kratom has become a point of contention at the end of President Jokowi’s administration. At that time, the Chief of Staff to the President, Moeldoko, brought the issue of kratom to a limited meeting with Jokowi. The government was initially divided on the issue of kratom. The Ministry of Trade and the Ministry of Agriculture saw economic potential. However, the National Narcotics Agency (BNN) highlighted the potential for kratom abuse. Jokowi instructed his subordinates to study various aspects of kratom. On September 11, 2024, Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan legalized the export of kratom.
“The change in the Trade Minister’s regulation on kratom exports is a follow-up to the results of an internal meeting chaired by President Jokowi. In the meeting, it was decided that kratom exports must comply with predetermined standards in order to increase added value and provide legal certainty,” said Director General of Foreign Trade at the Ministry of Trade, Isy Karim.
Trade Minister Regulation No. 20/2024 regulates the types and sizes of kratom commodities that are prohibited for export. Meanwhile, Trade Minister Regulation No. 21/2024 regulates the requirements for exporters as well as the types, forms, and sizes of kratom that are permitted for export.
This article has been translated from the original Indonesian version.
Read the full CNN Indonesia article “Pengusaha Teriak Karena Gagal Ekspor Ribuan Ton Kratom” here:
https://www.cnnindonesia.com/ekonomi/20250103163650-92-1183527/pengusaha-teriak-karena-gagal-ekspor-ribuan-ton-kratom.
