When KOMIRA struggled to meet the credit collateral requirements from BNI, Yusuf Ramli remembered Perum Jamkrindo. This Rp10 billion fisheries cooperative loan was quickly disbursed because it was guaranteed by Perum Jamkrindo. Subsequently, KOMIRA could expand its business and continue to grow significantly.
AROUND 2014, the Indonesian Maritime Community Cooperative (KOMIRA) needed an additional investment capital of Rp10 billion. The funds were intended to develop the maritime sector, which had been KOMIRA's main focus.
As one of the operators of the National Fish Logistics System (SLIN), KOMIRA supports fishermen at eight fish capture and collection locations: Kendari, Banggai, Manado, Natuna, Pelabuhan Ratu, Ambon, Makassar, and Surabaya.
SLIN is a government program with three objectives: increasing capacity and stabilizing the national fisheries production and marketing system; strengthening and expanding connectivity between upstream production centers, downstream production, and marketing efficiently; improving the efficiency of fish supply chain management, production materials and tools, and information from upstream to downstream.
To achieve this, the cooperative management applied for a loan from Bank Negara Indonesia (BNI). However, it was hindered by collateral issues. "Our collateral value was insufficient," said KOMIRA Chairman, Yusuf Ramli.
Fortunately, in difficult times, Yusuf remembered Perum Jamkrindo. He then went to the Perum Jamkrindo office to seek support. As a result, Perum Jamkrindo agreed to guarantee KOMIRA’s loan. A few days later, the loan was disbursed.
"Perum Jamkrindo's role as a credit guarantor greatly supports KOMIRA in opening various business opportunities," said Yusuf.
KOMIRA’s relationship with Perum Jamkrindo has actually been long-standing. "Since Perum Jamkrindo was still called Perum Pengembangan Keuangan Koperasi (Perum PKK)," recalled Yusuf Ramli.
In the 1990s, Yusuf Ramli gathered several fishermen in Jakarta to establish a cooperative. His introduction to PKK was indirect, as the first loan obtained was channeled through the Al Islah Cooperative—Rp75 million in 1997.
It was only in 1998 that KOMIRA accessed Perum PKK directly and successfully obtained a profit-sharing loan of Rp150 million. After successfully repaying the first loan, KOMIRA received another round of funding amounting to Rp700 million. This amount increased significantly and was also repaid without issues. Due to this good track record, PKK again provided a profit-sharing loan with a larger value of Rp1.2 billion.
Throughout Perum PKK's history, KOMIRA engaged in three profit-sharing collaborations, all with smooth repayments. The loans were used for working capital and investment. The increase in profit-sharing loan amounts demonstrated KOMIRA’s success in supporting and developing its members’ businesses.
For Yusuf, his cooperative’s achievements could not be separated from the assistance of Perum PKK, which later became Perum Jamkrindo. Thus, he firmly believes that KOMIRA also belongs to Perum Jamkrindo.
"In addition to providing profit-sharing loans, at that time Perum PKK also offered mentoring and even helped with bookkeeping," Yusuf explained.
The capital provided by Perum PKK allowed KOMIRA to develop its business from scratch and continue growing to the point where it could directly engage with banks, particularly BNI. After three rounds of profit-sharing loans, no further business cooperation occurred, but the cooperative maintained communication with Perum PKK.
Yusuf admitted that these memories kept him thinking about Perum Jamkrindo, especially when he faced difficulties applying for a bank loan due to insufficient collateral.
Today, KOMIRA has transformed into a large cooperative with a substantial business scale. It can even compete with major enterprises in the same industry. The number of fishermen and fish processors under its guidance has exceeded 1,000 across various locations in Java, Bali, Sulawesi, Maluku, and many central fishing areas in Indonesia.
KOMIRA’s business has grown rapidly, not only meeting the domestic fish market demand but also expanding into export markets such as China, Korea, Vietnam, Taiwan, and Singapore. KOMIRA’s participation in SLIN is proof of its success.
For Yusuf, the key to business success lies in personal reputation: having a strong commitment to quality and quantity, business network expansion, and measurable business development in line with capacity.
"Business development cannot be based on ambition alone; everything must be calculated according to existing capabilities," he stated.
Excerpt from the book INDUSTRI PENJAMINAN: Menatap Indonesia Gemilang by Diding S. Anwar