Announcement Of Corona Virus In Indonesia, Indonesia's Economic Growth Will Be Below 5 Percent

Illustrated. (Irfan Meidianto / VOI)

JAKARTA - Two Indonesian citizens (WNI) consisting of a 61-year-old mother and 31-year-old child have reportedly tested positive for the COVID-19 virus. This finding is the first case of the corona virus in Indonesia. So what is the impact on the Indonesian economy?

Previously, the impact of the corona virus which had plagued several countries made the Indonesian economy predicted to decline in the first semester of 2020. Especially with the announcement of two cases of positive Indonesian citizens for the corona virus, according to the Executive Director of the Indonesian Center of Reform on Economics (CORE) Mohammad Faisal, saying the impact would be even greater.

"The impact will be deeper (after the announcement). If previously, Indonesia's economy in the first quarter would decline by 4.9-4.8 percent, then the announcement might be even lower," Faisal told VOI, Monday 2 March.

The reason is, he said, before the announcement was made, the effect of the economic downturn came from the case of the spread of the corona virus abroad. Meanwhile, because now there has been an announcement that the potential for a weakening economy could spread to the wider tourism sector.

"Because it is the sector that will be affected the most," said Faisal.

Previously, to ward off the economic downturn due to the corona virus, the government poured out Rp72 billion of funds, one of which was used for influencers. The plan is to boost Indonesian tourism, these influencers will be imported from the United States, European countries, Australia, the Middle East, India and other countries.

According to Faisal, if the goal of disbursing these funds is to restore economic growth in the tourism sector as before the case of the corona virus, then it is unlikely. "Because the pressure is so great," said Faisal.

What the Government Needs to Do

According to Faisal, for now the most appropriate step for the government is to prevent the spread of this virus from developing. "The government must be more serious in handling the case, because it will spread quickly if it is not handled seriously," he said.

The reason is, if it has developed, it is feared that its impact will have an impact on the economy. Then the second thing that the government can do to reduce the impact of the weakening economy, especially the tourism sector, is to build trust.

"Especially for domestic tourists," concluded Faisal.