Unemployment Rate Drops, Sri Mulyani's Subordinate: Policy Is On Track

JAKARTA - Head of the Fiscal Policy Agency (BKF) of the Ministry of Finance, Febrio Kacaribu, said the declining unemployment rate is a separate indication that the policies taken by the government during 2020-2022 have been effective.

"In 2021 unemployment has decreased, then in 2022, it will decline again. This shows that our policy direction is on the right track," he said in an official statement quoted on Sunday, May 15.

According to Febrio, from the realization of the National Economic Recovery (PEN) until April 2022, it has been going well, especially in the context of handling health in the form of providing incentives that have been prepared.

"Public protection has also been running according to schedule, such as the distribution of assistance for the Family Hope Program (PKH), Direct Cash Assistance (BLT), and Pre-Employment Cards, which are part of the reason for the continued improving economic results," explained Febrio.

However, Febrio said that apart from getting stronger, economic growth must also be of high quality. This is reflected in the declining unemployment rate balanced by the poverty rate which also continues to decline, even to the level of inequality which continues to improve.

"For the 2022 period, we remain optimistic even though we are faced with different challenges in the medium term," he said.

Furthermore, Sri Mulyani's subordinate revealed that from 2022 to 2026, reforms will continue to be carried out from a structural perspective, especially in terms of ease of doing business, as well as increasing downstream competitiveness and encouraging even stronger industrialization. In addition, reforms will also be carried out from the digital economy sector, the green economy, and the financial sector.

"The government hopes that productivity will increase so that the economic growth scenario in the medium term becomes quite promising for the economy," closed Febrio.