This is to ensure that the state budget will benefit residents more, as the subsidy will be redirected to the poorest residents who need it (the subsidy directly). The approach can also reduce the harmful effects of inflation on poor households
Jakarta (ANTARA) – The government can reduce the huge burden of subsidies from the state budget by ensuring accurate distribution of subsidies and redirecting the sum to other beneficial purposes, according to the House Budget Committee (DPR RI).
“This is to ensure that the state budget will benefit residents more because the subsidy will be redirected to the poorest residents who need it (the subsidy directly). The approach can also reduce the harmful effects of inflation on poor households,” said the chairman of the budget committee of the DPR RI. Said Abdullah said in a statement here on Friday.
The vehicle fuel subsidy budget of 502 trillion rupees ($33.6 billion) is ideally redirected to develop public sectors that will benefit residents, such as education, health, energy infrastructure and other sectors, he noted.
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According to Abdullah, the huge grant can instead be used to develop 3,501 kilometers of toll roads, 3,333 mid-level hospitals, 41,666 new public health centers and 227,886 primary schools.
The government can only redirect the subsidy to a particular group, such as micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) who need fuel for their daily production, he said.
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The grant can also be reallocated to build Indonesia’s food resilience, especially since the country still has to import basic food items, such as meat, vegetables, sugar and soybeans, despite being self-sufficient. in rice, he noted.
“Food self-sufficiency is essential because our dependence on food imports (makes us) vulnerable to various economic risks that affect the population and our budget balance,” said the chairman of the budget committee.
The lawmaker also suggested redirecting the subsidy budget to bolster energy conversion programs to reduce dependence on imported crude oil.
Energy conversion must be a priority, as achieving energy self-sufficiency will be key to reducing the budget bloat of vehicle fuel subsidy in the future, he added.
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