Grab, the leading ride-hailing platform in Southeast Asia, today launched its ‘Grab 4 Indonesia’ 2020 master plan, endorsed by Badan Koordinasi Penanaman Modal (BKPM), the Government of Indonesia’s Investment Coordinating Board. Under the plan, Grab will invest USD 700 million in Indonesia over the next four years to support Indonesia’s goal of becoming Southeast Asia’s largest digital economy by 2020. ‘Grab 4 Indonesia’ covers a range of programs that aim to provide all Indonesians an opportunity to move into the digital economy, including opening a Grab R&D centre in Jakarta to develop technology innovations for the Indonesian market, launching a social impact fund to invest in companies focused on deepening financial inclusion, and increasing access to mobile payments and financing opportunities across the country.

The ‘Grab 4 Indonesia’ 2020 master plan follows a strong year of growth in Indonesia for Grab, with its GrabCar and GrabBike businesses each growing more than 600 per cent over the course of 2016. Following its 2016 expansion to several new cities, Grab now brings the convenience and affordability of its multi-modal services to more cities in Indonesia than any of its competitors, including Jakarta, Bali, Bandung, Padang, Makassar, Medan, Surabaya and Yogyakarta. In addition, Grab continues to see highly active user engagement and stickiness across its multi-service platform, with one in three of Grab’s Indonesian passengers using more than one Grab service.

Grab’s driver partners were a key pillar of the company’s robust growth. As part of our longstanding mission to improve the lives of our driver partners, Grab drivers earn 40-70 per cent more per hour than the average transport or delivery driver in Indonesia, and Grab has generated over USD 260 million of income for its driver partners in Indonesia.

H.E. Thomas Lembong, BKPM Chief, said, “The ‘Grab 4 Indonesia’ 2020 master plan is testimony to Indonesia’s conducive business climate. We welcome companies like Grab who want to contribute to Indonesia’s economic progress and create jobs for Indonesians – to further strengthen the nation’s competitiveness in the global marketplace.”

H.E. Rudiantara, Minister of Communication and Information Technology, said, “We want all Indonesians to benefit from information technology to improve their lives, develop new skills and build the next wave of global leaders in technology. Grab’s investment to train and hire more ICT professionals and mentor young entrepreneurs will accelerate the growth of Indonesia’s digital economy. This kind of app has to be positioned as a tool to spur and empower people and the economy.”

H.E. Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs, said, “Indonesia’s growth potential will depend in large part on the continued development of its infrastructure, including an efficient public transport network. Technology will play a major role, and services like Grab that leverage the power of data analytics will complement and improve the efficiency and reliability of our nation’s transportation infrastructure, enabling Indonesia to progress even faster.”

Rosan Roeslani, Chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said, “The government and the private sector must work hand in hand to invest in human capital and enable Indonesia to move up the value chain. Grab’s investment into the long-term future of Indonesia and opening of its R&D centre in Jakarta will boost our technology sector and provide more economic opportunities to all Indonesians.”

Anthony Tan, Group CEO and Co-founder, Grab, said, “As the largest homegrown technology startup in Southeast Asia, we are excited to make this significant investment in Indonesia’s future and accelerate their transition to a fully integrated digital economy. The ‘Grab 4 Indonesia’ 2020 master plan underlines our deep commitment to driving Southeast Asia forward and our excitement about the tremendous opportunities we see in Indonesia to help build and advance the country’s digital infrastructure and ecosystem.”

Ridzki Kramadibrata, Managing Director, Grab Indonesia, said, “Since day one, we have demonstrated our commitment to Indonesia’s long-term economic growth targets and job creation through the expansion of our business to multiple new cities, hiring a strong local team, and providing our Grab driver partners with compelling income opportunities. The ‘Grab 4 Indonesia’ 2020 master plan takes this commitment one step further; each program represents a building block toward creating a foundation of sustainable growth for Indonesia’s digital future. We will train engineers and invest in aspiring technopreneurs so that they, in turn, can develop technology solutions and create new economic opportunities.”

‘Grab 4 Indonesia’ 2020 Master Plan

Grab’s master plan for Indonesia covers three major pillars:

• Create new information technology jobs and upskill Indonesia’s human capital

Grab will open an R&D centre in Jakarta and target hiring 150 engineers over the next two years. The R&D centre will focus on developing innovations specific to Indonesia by building on the success of Grab’s existing localised solutions, including algorithms to address new road regulations in Jakarta and GrabHitch (Nebeng), a “bike-pooling” service that caters to nearly 1.4 million commuters in greater Jakarta.

To equip Indonesian engineers with globally competitive skills, Grab will provide training opportunities at its R&D centres in Singapore, Beijing and Seattle. Fresh graduates with curious minds and a passion to improve lives in Indonesia are welcome to apply, and Grab will select potential engineers through on-campus interviews and partnerships with leading state and engineering universities.

• Invest in technopreneurship for social good

Grab will start the ‘Grab 4 Indonesia’ social impact investment fund to finance companies focused on deepening financial inclusion across all cities and income levels in Indonesia. Grab will invest up to USD 100 million in startups or aspiring technopreneurs to grow the next wave of Indonesian companies with social aspirations to bring more Indonesians into the digital economy. The fund will focus on the mobile and financial services industries, with a particular emphasis on serving smaller cities and communities who have yet to benefit from the digital economy.

The ‘Grab 4 Indonesia’ social impact investment fund will help selected startups accelerate their products to market with both capital investment and technical assistance from Grab. In support of the “1,000 Digital Startups National Movement” initiated by the Government of Indonesia, Grab will also organise a series of entrepreneurship programs in collaboration with selected partners including educational institutions and entrepreneurship organisations. This will include seminars for aspiring technopreneurs and mentorship from Grab executives on developing sustainable business plans with social purpose.

• Expand access to mobile payments and financing opportunities

Grab will continue to launch and enhance mobile services to increase Indonesians’ access to mobile payments and financing opportunities. Grab will expand its mobile payment solutions in Indonesia through GrabPay Credits, its cashless stored value option, and existing partnerships with Mandiri and their e-Cash solution, while also continuing to develop a shared e-money payments platform with Lippo Group and Nobu Bank to enable all Indonesians to use Grab to pay for services and goods at Lippo’s retail partners.

In addition, Grab will provide its driver partners with access to more financing opportunities to purchase their own smartphones and automotive vehicles, giving them the opportunity to build sustainable livelihoods and become micro-entrepreneurs. Grab will continue to work with its banking partners, including Nobu Bank, to extend financing opportunities to all Indonesian consumers.

Indonesia is Grab’s largest market in Southeast Asia. Grab will continue to expand to more cities in Indonesia, grow its transport services, and invest in GrabPay as a mobile payments platform. Since its launch in 2012, Grab has evolved from a simple app for booking a taxi into the largest ground transportation app in Southeast Asia. To date, the company has more than 630,000 drivers and 33 million downloads across the region.