Ministry Of Finance Adjusts The 2024 K/L Budget, Anticipates Global Economist Uncertainty Effects

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Finance has again carried out automatic adjustments or automatic adjustments to spending on ministries/agencies (K/L) for the 2024 fiscal year in order to anticipate the uncertainty of global economic conditions and geopolitical turmoil.

"According to the President's direction at the submission of the Budget Implementation List (DIPA) in 2024, currently global geopolitical dynamic conditions have the potential to affect the world economy, so it is necessary to anticipate potentials or possibilities that may occur in 2024," said Head of the Communication and Information Services Bureau (KLI) of the Ministry of Finance Deni Surjantoro, quoted from Antara, Saturday, February 3.

Based on the Letter of the Minister of Finance Number S-182/MK.02/2023, the budget adjustment value set is IDR 50.15 trillion.

According to Deni, the automatic adjustment policy is one of the methods to respond to global dynamics and has been proven to be ampul to maintain the resilience of the 2022 and 2023 State Revenue and Expenditure Budget (APBN).

"Basically, the budget affected by the automatic adjustment is still in the ministry/institution (K/L)," he said.

The automatic adjustment policy was also implemented last year, where the amount was IDR 50.23 trillion.

Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani, through her written statement on Saturday, February 18, explained that automatic adjustment is not a budget cut, but an anticipatory strategy for global economic uncertainty and geopolitical conditions through priority spending.

This policy is a temporary backup mechanism for K/L spending which is temporarily blocked on the shopping ceiling because it is still deemed necessary to continue as a risk mitigation effort so that the APBN is able to withstand the turmoil that is expected to arise.

Activities that are prioritized for automatic adjustments include personnel expenditures that can be streamlined and expenditures on goods that can be streamlined (privileged from honorarium expenditures, official trips, meeting packages, other operational goods expenditures, and other non-operational goods expenditures).

Then, an efficient capital expenditure, non-permanent social assistance, and activities that are estimated to have not been able to fulfill the supporting documents for its implementation until the end of the first semester of 2023.

Meanwhile, the Minister of Finance said that the budget that was excluded from the automatic adjustment policy was spending related to permanent social assistance including Contribution Assistance Recipients (PBI) for Health Insurance, Family Hope Program (PKH), and Basic Food Cards, expenditure related to the stages of the general election, spending on payment of Contracts for jamak Year, and spending on payment of service availability.

Exceptions are carried out to maintain priority expenditure allocations and maintain the function of the APBN as a social protection instrument for vulnerable communities, national economic recovery, and structural reforms.

Judging from what is prioritized and excluded, automatic adjustments will not interfere with the achievement of national development targets or the targets of each K / L.