"I want to remind the Committee, Task Force, and all governors to really manage matters related to COVID-19 and the economy to ensure that a good balance is struck," Jokowi stated while chairing a virtual limited cabinet meeting on reports of the Committee for COVID-19 Handling and National Economic Recovery at the Merdeka Palace here on Monday.
The president pointed to the strategy to regulate the "brake and gas" balance had begun showing results, particularly in terms of handling COVID-19 and for economic recovery.
As of November 22, 2020, the average active cases of COVID-19 across the country had reached 12.78 percent, or lower than the global average of active cases, at 28.41 percent, Widodo pointed out.
The average recovery trend had also improved and stood at 84.03 percent, or better than the global recovery rate of 69.20 percent, he noted.
"In the economic sector, I mentioned last week that the trend in the second quarter at -5.32 had improved to -3.49 in the third quarter. We must also continue to fix this, so that in the fourth quarter, it will be better than that in the third quarter," the president emphasized.
In terms of the economic recovery efforts, the head of state called to prioritize matters pertaining to employment.
"Give special attention to matters relating to job creation. The dire need of the hour is to increase household consumption by encouraging small and micro businesses, medium-scale enterprises, and large businesses to start moving," he stated.
The president observed that the budget realization for several programs had been running well, such as the disbursement of wage subsidies having reached 82 percent and the productive assistance for working capital assistance for micro businesses at 79 percent.
"I think this will continue to be encouraged, so that it can help boost the people's purchasing power," he stated. Related news: Indef projects Indonesia's economic growth at 2.5-3 percent in 2021
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Translator: Rangga PAJ, Fardah
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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