Jakarta. Indonesia’s textile and textile products industry employs around 4 million people and contributes nearly 1% to gross domestic product, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto said Tuesday.

The industry also generates around $12 billion in annual exports and has room for further expansion, with factory utilization currently at about 75%, Airlangga said after a meeting with President Prabowo Subianto at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta.

“The textile industry contributes close to 1% of GDP, employs around 4 million people and generates approximately $12 billion in exports [annually],” Airlangga said.

He described textiles and textile products as a strategically important labor-intensive industry, saying the sector was growing by around 5.6%.

“We see textile factory utilization still at around 75%, so there is still room for expansion,” he said.

Tuesday’s meeting at the Presidential Palace focused partly on efforts to strengthen Indonesia’s textile industry, as the government seeks to support labor-intensive manufacturing and encourage investment and modernization in the sector.

Despite its substantial exports, the industry shows a sharp contrast between its upstream textile segment and downstream garment manufacturing.

Citing last year’s trade balance, Airlangga said Indonesia remained a net importer of textile raw materials and other upstream products, with imports reaching approximately $8.4 billion compared with exports of just $3.1 billion.

“If we look at last year’s textile trade balance, imports of textile raw materials were higher at around $8.4 billion, while exports amounted to only $3.1 billion,” he said.

The picture was reversed in the garment industry, where exports reached around $8.7 billion while imports totaled only about $690 million.

“So the conditions are different -- in the upstream industry, we are a net importer, but in garments we are a net exporter,” Airlangga said.

The figures highlight a structural challenge facing Indonesia’s textile industry: while the country has a strong export-oriented garment sector, parts of the domestic supply chain remain reliant on imported inputs.

The government has previously identified gaps in the textile value chain, particularly in yarn, fabric, dyeing, printing and finishing, and has outlined plans to encourage investment and modernization in those areas.

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