Indonesia budget committee to give widest room possible to next government

INDONESIA’S parliament will provide the widest possible room for the incoming president to carry out his programmes, its budget committee said in a document on Thursday (Jul 4).

The committee held a hearing to tentatively approve state budget assumptions for 2025, which will be used by the government as a basis before submitting the final proposal to the parliament in August.

“The committee is committed to give the widest possible leeway for the president-elect to carry out his vision and mission,” it said.

Prabowo Subianto, the country’s current defence minister, will take office in October alongside his running mate Gibran Rakabuming Raka, the eldest son of outgoing President Joko Widodo.

The budget for Prabowo’s flagship programme, giving a free meal to school students, will cost the country 71 trillion rupiah (S$6 billion) in the first year and has been included in the 2025 budget proposal, with an estimated budget deficit of 2.29 to 2.82 per cent of gross domestic product, Indonesia’s finance minister has said.

At the hearing on Thursday, the committee also approved other assumptions for 2025 with headline inflation seen in a range of 1.5 to 3.5 per cent, the rupiah to trade at average 15,300 to 15,900 per US dollar and the 10-year government bond yield in a range of 6.9 to 7.2 per cent. REUTERS