Indonesia announces end of pandemic handling fund

Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto (Photo: republika.co.id)

Jakarta (VNA) – Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto announced on August 11 that the government is preparing to stop allocating the budget for COVID-19 handling and national economic recovery (PC-PEN) from the end of this year.

According to him, based on Law No. 2 of 2020 concerning State Finance and Financial System Stability for COVID-19 Handling Efforts, the state budget deficit has been allowed to exceed 3 percent of the national gross domestic product (GDP) for three years till 2022

The government will not allocate a budget for COVID-19 handling and national economic recovery, but this does not mean that it will not continue its programmes in the health and social protection sectors, the minister clarified, adding that the fund will entirely be returned to each sector like before the COVID-19 broke out.

Earlier, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said that the budget allocation for COVID-19 handling and national economic recovery had reached 146.7 trillion Rp (9.99 billion USD), or 32.2 percent of the ceiling of 455.62 trillion Rp, as of July 22, 2022.

The budget allocation comprised 63.7 trillion Rp for social protection and 31.8 trillion Rp for the health sector./.

VNA