Cooperation With AIIB, Sri Mulyani Discusses Strengthening The Position Of The Republic Of Indonesia And Energy Transition

Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani (Photo; Doc. Antara)

Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani Indrawati discussed strengthening Indonesia's position in collaboration with the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).

He did this during a meeting with AIIB President Jin Liqun on the sidelines of the World Bank-IMF Spring Meeting 2024 agenda in Washington DC, United States.

"Some of the things we discussed related to Indonesia's cooperation with AIIB, including strengthening Indonesia's position and the energy transition mechanism (ETM/JETP)," Sri Mulyani said quoting Antara.

On this occasion, the Minister of Finance expressed support for changes in organizational structure in the AIIB institution, considering that this is a proactive approach in preparing organizations that continue to grow while increasing operational effectiveness.

"We both hope that the plan will not only have an impact on increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of institutions but also strengthen AIIB's role in supporting infrastructure development projects in Indonesia and in other areas," he said.

Previously, the Minister of Finance became a joint panelist with First Deputy Managing Director of IMF Gita Gopinath, Finance Minister Chile Mario Marcel, and Director General for Economic and Financial Affairs European Commission Maarten Verwey at the IMF Fiscal Forum meeting, one of the IMF-World Bank Spring Meetings.

In this activity, sharing Indonesia's experience in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. He said policies cannot be separated from discretion, including during a crisis. This was also done by Indonesia.

An example is the deficit in the State Revenue and Expenditure Budget (APBN) which is not allowed to exceed 3 percent in one fiscal year. This discretion is a form of response to the pandemic that has occurred and is only allowed to take effect for three years.

Meanwhile, the discretion applied in Indonesia as a whole is fairly stricter than other countries, where Indonesia only allows the deficit to reach a maximum of 6 percent when other countries allow it to reach 10 percent.