JAKARTA - Indonesia's economic growth in 2025 reached 5.11 percent, but is still lower than Vietnam and Malaysia.
However, Minister of Finance Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa assessed that Indonesia recorded the best performance in terms of balance between growth and fiscal management.
Purbaya emphasized that Indonesia is a country with a combination of high growth and the lowest deficit rate in 2025.
"Indonesia is the country with the highest growth and the lowest deficit in 2025. This achievement is even more meaningful because it has managed to maintain a much safer and more controlled deficit ratio and debt ratio than our peers," said Purbaya in the APBN Kita press conference, Monday, February 23.
He admitted that Indonesia's growth rate was still below Vietnam's 8.02 percent and Malaysia's 5.17 percent in the same year.
However, Purbaya emphasized that the higher growth in both countries was accompanied by the consequences of a larger budget deficit.
"If we look at the deficit, how much is it? We are 2.9 percent of GDP, Vietnam 3.6 percent, Malaysia 6.41 percent. So, he pays for growth with a huge cost compared to us," he said.
He also stressed the importance of the precautionary principle in fiscal policy, and based on national standards and global practices, the safe limit of the deficit is generally in the range of 3 percent, so Vietnam and Malaysia are considered to have exceeded this threshold.
Purbaya emphasized that Indonesia remained consistent in maintaining fiscal discipline.
"Compared to the national standard of fiscal prudence, it is very clear that Vietnam and Malaysia are violating above 3 percent of both. So we can create growth by ensuring that the principle of prudence is better maintained. So, we are more skilled than those countries. When the economy goes down, we give stimulus, but we do not leave fiscal prudence," he explained.
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