Jokowi: The Focus Of The 2023 State Budget On Job Creation And Agenda Ahead Of The 2024 General Election

President Jokowi. (Dok. BPMI Setpres)

JAKARTA - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) asked all levels of the Working Cabinet ministers to focus the 2023 state revenue and expenditure budget (APBN) on productive activities. Mainly in job creation.

"I ask that the 2023 State Budget be really focused on program activities that are really productive, especially in the context of job creation and poverty alleviation," Jokowi said at the Plenary Cabinet Session at the Merdeka Palace, Jakarta, Monday, January 16, was confiscated by Antara.

Jokowi explained that apart from productive programs, the 2023 State Budget is also focused on completing national priority programs, such as reducing stunting rates, reducing extreme poverty and the agenda ahead of the 2024 General Election.

Based on this directive, the President requested that the relevant ministries be able to encourage local governments in utilizing village funds to spur the regional economy.

"Do not let the transferred funds have no effect on spurring the economy in the region," said the President.

The Head of State also reminded that the use of the regional revenue and expenditure budget (APBD) must be in sync with the APBN which focuses on national priority programs, such as the people's economy, exports and investments.

In the opening remarks of the Plenary Cabinet Session, President Jokowi conveyed the evaluation of the national economy in 2022.

According to him, many positive achievements occurred amid external pressure in the year of turbulence 2022, such as economic growth which was estimated to range from 5.2 to 5.3 percent, to inflation which could still be controlled at the level of 5.5 percent.

The President assessed that 2023 was also not an easy year because a number of major countries experienced economic weakening, such as the European Union, China and the United States, due to increasingly high geopolitical pressure.

"I think it is estimated that all will weaken even though our exports to these countries are very large, so we must be careful," he concluded.