Bank Mandiri
As one of Indonesia’s leading civil servants, Mandiri chief executive Kartika Wirjoatmodjo takes his bank’s social commitments seriously. From disaster relief to raising healthcare standards and bringing remote communities and indigenous tribes into the economy, Mandiri’s CSR charter is focused on working alongside state campaigns to develop business and financial literacy across the 17,000-island archipelago.
At times, it can seem a Sisyphean task. According to Indonesia’s Financial Services Authority, the financial literacy of Indonesians is around 22%, compared to Singapore at 96%, Malaysia at 81% and comparable Thailand’s 78%. Mandiri’s initiatives are as varied as they are dispersed across Indonesia.
In southern Sumatra, Mandiri backs a training programme for local Batik craftsmen to transform their skills into businesses. In south-east Sulawesi, a community programme has empowered the seafaring Bajo people to develop their way of life into an eco-tourism initiative. In North Lombok, Mandiri has supported what it describes as the “cultural acculturation” of Hinduism, Animism and Islam into a sustainable tourism programme focused on the area’s unique heritage.
Another programme eases the re-entry of the millions of Indonesian guest workers into the economy. Mandiri’s business-orientation programmes have been attended 36,000 young entrepreneurs from across Indonesia who, it is hoped, will become Mandiri customers.