President: Immediately Realize APBD Expenditures to Boost the Economy in the Third Quarter

Detiktoday.com – The Covid-19 pandemic has an impact not only on the health sector, but on the economic sector as well. For that reason, the solution for both is equally important.

While delivering directions at the West Java Province Covid-19 Handling and Control Post at the Kodam III / Siliwangi headquarters, Tuesday, August 11, 2020, President Joko Widodo again reminded the importance of the government to regulate “gas and brake” between health and the economy.

“I repeatedly say, the gas and brakes, regents, mayors, governors, really have to control their management with good precision,” said the President.

To boost the sluggish economy, the President said that the government had issued a number of stimuli in the form of social assistance (bansos), including cash assistance and direct cash assistance for villages. In addition, the government also provides free electricity subsidies for 450 VA customers and a 50 percent discount for 900 VA customers.

“Economic stimulus for small businesses has also been carried out through banking. Soon we will issue productive social assistance, this is for SMEs. It will be given to 13 million micro businesses, our small businesses. Emergency working capital assistance of IDR 2.4 million, “said the President.

“Why is this assistance provided? We hope that stimulus for our economy, especially for the lower middle class, can be provided so that there is purchasing power there. Our domestic consumption will also increase, so we expect national economic growth to grow better than last quarter. “said the President.

To note, the Indonesian economy in the first quarter of 2020 still grew positively 2.97 percent. In the second quarter, the Indonesian economy fell to minus 5.32 percent. However, the Head of State is optimistic that Indonesia’s economy will recover in the third quarter.

“I am optimistic that in the third quarter we will be better than the second quarter and we hope we want to grow positively, but this requires hard work,” said the President.

One of the efforts that the President said could boost the economy in the third quarter was through regional spending. To that end, the President asked regional heads, both governors and regents / mayors, to immediately realize their APBD expenditure.

“Nationally, I still see that the budgets are still in the bank, the APBD is still Rp170 trillion in the bank. This means that their use requires speed, especially in the third quarter. The key is in July, August, and September so that we do not enter into it. economic recession category, “said the President.

“Once again, July, August, September is very decisive. Once we spend it as soon as possible, there is still a chance we can return to the positive again,” said the President.