"I believe the program is good and is worthy of receiving support from all parties," Ahmad noted in a statement in Jakarta, Thursday.
The House’s deputy chairman assessed that the program aims to step up budget absorption in the National Economic Recovery (PEN) program to boost the economy and suppress the deepening contraction in the third quarter.
Ahmad reminded that the government should prioritize disseminating information on the program on a swift and massive scale to workers and laborers entitled to receive it.
"As a result, the benefits can be felt by the community properly and optimally," he affirmed.
The Gerindra Party politician noted that the COVID-19 pandemic not only affected the health sector but also had an impact on other sectors, especially the economic sector, both nationally and globally.
According to Ahmad, the government should formulate strategic policies to lower the rate of transmission of COVID-19 while simultaneously driving the economic wheels of the community.
Hence, he believes the wage subsidy program, launched by the government, should be supported to drive the people's economy.
The Indonesian government will distribute productive assistance of Rp2.4 million per individual to 13 million operators of micro-, small-, and medium-scale enterprises (MSMEs) in August, 2020, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati earlier noted.
“We are planning to disburse the aid using the data gleaned in August. Perhaps on August 17, 2020 or later, (the aid program will be launched) by the president or a minister,” Indrawati stated at an online discussion here on Tuesday.
The minister pointed to aid disbursement being a challenge in terms of data collection, especially when it comes to unbankable MSMEs.
Microfinancing units UMi and Mekaar have pegged the number of MSMEs at six million and two million, respectively, while state pawnshop firm, PT Pegadaian, has recorded four million MSMEs, and 1.5 million cooperative units.
“We have allocated Rp28.8 trillion of budget, and now, we are in the process of data collection and verification,” the minister added.
The minister admitted that the data obtained from the Social Affairs Ministry did not match the real conditions on the field as it had not been updated since 2015. Related news: Govt to provide aid to 13.8 mln low-wage workers in Q3
Related news: National farm workers' daily nominal wages increased in April: BPS
Translator: Imam B, Azis Kurmala
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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