Don't Be Surprised, This Is The Debt That The Government Will Withdraw Next Year

Illustration (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA – The government has submitted the 2023 State Budget Bill (RUU) to the DPR on 16 August. The document reveals that the value of next year's state spending is known to reach IDR 3,041.7 trillion with an estimated revenue of IDR 2,443.6 trillion.

Based on the composition of the figures, it was found that the 2023 APBN deficit value was Rp. 598.2 trillion or equivalent to 2.85 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) stated that the fulfillment of budget needs will be covered through a financing scheme, aka debt. However, the Head of State guarantees that debt withdrawals are carried out proportionally and accountably in accordance with funding needs.

"The deficit will be financed by utilizing safe and managed financing sources, while maintaining fiscal sustainability," he said at the Senayan Parliament Complex, Jakarta last week.

It should be remembered that the target of APBN financing does not only have to be realized 100 percent in the current year period. If the state's financial performance is improving, the number of debt withdrawals can be reduced.

This situation can be seen in the management of the 2022 state budget until the end of last July, with the realization of new budget financing reaching Rp. 196.7 trillion or 23.4 percent of the target of Rp. 840.2 trillion in accordance with Presidential Regulation 98/2022.

"The commitment to maintaining fiscal sustainability is carried out so that the level of debt risk is always within safe limits through financial market deepening," President Jokowi continued.

Meanwhile, if examined in terms of the amount of debt, as of July 2022, the government's obligations were recorded at Rp. 7,163.1 trillion, equivalent to 37.9 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).

This level is still safe when referring to the constitutional rules of Law Number 17 of 2003 concerning State Finance which stipulates that the debt ratio cannot be more than 60 percent of GDP.