Sri Mulyani's Answer Calms Down, This Is The Impact Of Omicron On The Economy At The Beginning Of The Year

JAKARTA - Minister of Finance, Sri Mulyani, conveyed her views regarding the COVID-19 case which continues to peak due to the Omicron variant. The Minister of Finance said that the Omicron has different 'damaging' characteristics compared to the delta variant which had hit the national economy quite deeply.

"We continue to monitor the development of the Omicron case. First, the nature or character of omicron in terms of strategy (handling) is different from that adopted during Delta. So we will also see the impact on the economy in the first quarter of 2022", she said when holding a virtual press conference on Wednesday, February 2.

According to the Minister of Finance, another aspect that makes a difference is the progress of handling the pandemic, which is now much better and more prepared than last year.

“Secondly, at this time of Omicron, the acceleration of vaccination has also been increased so that it is different when Delta spreads. Even the vaccine already includes children as well as a booster. Therefore, it is hoped that the community's endurance can be better even though they must continue to carry out health protocols", she said.

Furthermore, the state treasurer also explained that the government continued to conduct studies from several countries that had experienced the Omicron case first. The reason is that the situation in the country is believed to have not yet reached its peak and will last until next March.

"Of course, Indonesia will continue to learn by looking at all the evidence regarding the impact of Omicron, both in Indonesia itself and in other countries that have experienced an earlier wave, namely in the fourth quarter of 2021 yesterday", she said.

In general, the Minister of Finance revealed that the conditions at the beginning of this year had a stronger tendency than at the beginning of 2021.

“From an economic perspective, it is hoped that we will be able to maintain it, not be under too much pressure. Remember, in 2021 we made a very strict PSBB decision and caused economic growth to minus 0.7 percent in the first quarter of 2021. Now, the situation is quite good, especially in November and December 2021 which stimulated a lot of economic activity", she explained.

“If this can be done in the first quarter of 2022 while still performing relatively well, then we are optimistic that the recovery will continue to strengthen above the first quarter of last year. So, we can achieve the economic growth target of above 5 percent for 2022 as stated in the State Budget Law, although it may experience a slight weakening", concluded Minister of Finance, Sri Mulyani.