Sri Mulyani Calls The Social Security Program Also Protects Middle Class Communities

Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani Indrawati. (Photo: Maria Trisnawati/VOI)

Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani revealed that the social protection (perlinsos) budgeted for the State Revenue and Expenditure Budget (APBN) not only supports the poor but also the middle class.

"We also provide social protection to groups that are not only vulnerable, poor but also to the main class," Sri Mulyani said at the 2025 RAPBN Press Conference, Friday, August 16.

Sri Mulyani said that many people imagine that what is budgeted in the APBN is only in the form of social assistance (bansos), the Family Hope Program (PKH), basic necessities, Smart Indonesia Card (KIP) and PBI from the Ministry of Health.

But in reality, he said, the state budget also provides assistance to all lapisans of society in the form of subsidies so that prices become lower.

"The prices for fuel, electricity, LPG. This means that all people, middle and rich people enjoy the subsidy," he continued.

Not only that, continued Sri Mulyani, other fiscal instruments that often miss the exemption of Value Added Tax (VAT) for several commodities such as basic needs, education, health, and transportation.

"So many people think that all service goods have VAT, but actually the HPP Law really explains; basic necessities, education, health, transportation, do not get VAT," explained Sri Mulyani.

It is known that in the period 2020 to 2025 the realization of the social welfare budget contracted to IDR 497,965 billion in 2020 to IDR 436,174 billion in 2023 so that the average decline reached 4.3 percent.

The decline was due to the year the government implemented policies for handling the COVID-19 pandemic and national economic recovery.

The outlook for the social welfare budget until the end of 2024 is estimated at IDR 485,102.2 billion, an increase of 11.2 percent from the realization in 2023.

Meanwhile, in the 2025 RAPBN, the social welfare budget is planned at IDR 504,716 billion and will be optimized to accelerate poverty alleviation and reduce inequality.