Airlangga Is Optimistic That Economic Recovery Program Budget Will Be Absorbed By 100 Percent By The End Of This Year

Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs, Airlangga Hartarto. (Photo: Doc. Coordinating Ministry for the Economy)

JAKARTA - Coordinating Minister for Economic Midwives Airlangga Hartarto said he was confident that the national economic recovery program or PEN budget could be realized 100 percent by the end of the year. Especially considering the remaining time only two months left.

"Once again, facing the remaining two months, it is important for economic recovery and optimizing budget absorption," he said in a virtual press conference, Tuesday, October 26.

Airlangga said the projection could be achieved because the government still had to pay claims for treating COVID-19 patients and distributing incentives for medical personnel.

"The prognosis until the end of the year will increase or will be able to reach 100 percent or even more because there are treatments related to the Delta variant. The claims for patient care in hospitals have also increased," he said.

The former Minister of Industry said that the government is also optimizing the remaining social assistance budget for other social assistance. Among other things, the government will add 1.6 million recipients of Wage Subsidy Assistance (BSU) with a budget amounting to IDR 1.6 trillion.

"Of course, with this remaining budget, there will be an expansion of 1.6 million target workers and the total budget is IDR 1.6 trillion," he said.

Not only that, Airlangga said that for the upcoming November-December period, the basic food card top-up will be carried out for three months. The amount is IDR 300.000 for each recipient.

"Each IDR 300.000 in 35 priority districts, especially for handling extreme poverty. Later in December, the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) Poverty Census will be conducted in those 35 districts," he said.

The data for the poor are taken from the recipients of the Basic Food Card to Hope Family Program (PKH) which will later be optimized.

"We are optimizing for BSU and basic necessities that are linked to handling extreme poverty so that we believe these programs can absorb existing funds," he said.

Meanwhile, the realization of the 2021 National Economic Recovery (PEN) budget to date has reached IDR 433.91 trillion or 58.3 percent of the IDR 744.77 trillion ceiling.