Sri Mulyani Called Vaccine Availability A Strengthening Factor For Economic Growth In 2021

Minister of Finance, Sri Mulyani Indrawati. (Photo: Ministry of Finance)

JAKARTA - Indonesia's economic growth in the next year will be greatly influenced by several factors. Among them are the availability of the COVID-19 vaccine and support for the expansion of the national economic recovery program (PEN).

Finance Minister Sri Mulyani said that Indonesia's economy is projected to begin to recover in the third and fourth quarters of this year. Where, the acceleration will occur in 2021 with economic growth at the level of 5.0 to 5.7 percent.

However, said Sri Mulyani, next year's economic growth will still be influenced by several things. First, handling COVID-19 in the country and also the availability of vaccines in 2021.

"The timeline of the vaccine will be able to reduce uncertainty, especially at the end of this year and early next year. This will certainly affect the swing of our economic recovery," he said, in a virtual press conference, Tuesday, September 29.

Second, support for fiscal expansion to continue the National Economic Recovery (PEN) program.

"Such as support on the demand side through strengthening social assistance and BLT. Then supply side support focuses on tax incentives, as well as credit assistance and guarantees for MSMEs and corporations. This is expected to be an acceleration and a catalytic stimulus for the demand for working capital credit and investment credit," he said. .

Third, accelerating reforms for productivity, competitiveness, and the investment climate through the Omnibus Law on the Job Creation Bill, budget reform, and investment management institutions.

Fourth, global economic growth. The IMF predicts world economic growth in 2021 at 5.5 percent.

"There is a sense of optimism, there is a sense of hope, but there is also a sense of strategic steps being taken by the government. There is optimism, namely that there will be economic recovery. There is hope that the handling of COVID-19 and a cure through vaccination," he explained.

Sri Mulyani hopes that in the future the APBN instrument can be an important factor in maintaining resilience and restoring the economy and people's lives in 2021. Even though next year there is still uncertainty regarding the COVID-19 pandemic.

Furthermore, he said, the formulation of the 2021 State Budget on the one hand gives a signal to the public and the business world that the government wants to continue to support it so that it can quickly recover and get back on its feet. But on the other hand, the government has also given a cautionary signal.

"Prudent policy signals in maintaining the overall and sustainability of the APBN, which is an important fiscal instrument that works extraordinarily hard in the COVID-19 situation," he explained.