The president made the statement virtually at the opening ceremony of the 100 Indonesian Economists, witnessed through the INDEF YouTube channel on Thursday.
"In such a situation, the government needs support of various parties, especially economists, in the form of their thoughts and ideas that can be applied and through research-, evidence-based and practical examples and also guidelines to encourage our economy to grow and to bounce back," Jokowi noted.
The president remarked that the COVID-19 pandemic had affected national economic growth. Jokowi is optimistic that with the declining number of cases, economic growth will gradually increase again.
"We know that in the second quarter, our country recorded an economic growth of 7.07 percent, with inflation at 1.5 percent. We are optimistic of this progress also continuing in the third quarter, although we are certain that our economic growth in the third quarter will be lower than that in the second quarter," he stated.
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Jokowi called to apply a "gas and brake" policy in good balance, so that the number of COVID-19 cases can be reduced step-by-step while concurrently restoring the economy.
The government will apply three major strategies for the country's business going forward: industrial downstreaming, digitizing MSMEs, and a green economy.
The president believes that the thoughts and ideas of economists will be the answers to the nation’s problems and difficulties faced during the pandemic.
"I believe that with the ideas and inputs of economists, who are ready to provide big ideas and intervene to be part of the solution, we will definitely be able to get through these difficult times while preparing ourselves as best as we can to get out of this crisis," Jokowi affirmed.
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Translator: Rangga J, Resinta S
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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