"We remain optimistic that in 2024, it (economic growth) will still be better than 2023, even with the correction of (global economic) growth to 2.4 (percent)."
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The government is optimistic that Indonesia will achieve its target of 5.1–5.7 percent economic growth in 2024 amid the projected global economic slowdown, according to an official.

"We remain optimistic that in 2024, it (economic growth) will still be better than 2023, even with the correction of (global economic) growth to 2.4 (percent)," secretary of the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs, Susiwijono, said here on Friday.

He pointed out that all international organizations have projected that the global economy will experience a slowdown in 2024.

The World Bank has forecast that global economic growth will slow from 2.6 percent in 2023 to 2.4 percent in 2024. Likewise, in the October 2023 edition of the World Economic Outlook (WEO) report, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) projected that global growth will decline to 2.9 percent in 2024.

According to Susiwijono, the projected global growth slowdown can be attributed to several factors, such as heated geopolitical rivalries, which have led to supply chain disruptions. The other factors include climate change and the tightening of monetary policy in developed countries, which has continued to this day.

He said that the purchasing power of the community must be maintained. Therefore, it is necessary for the government to continue the social assistance program in 2024.

In December 2023, the government provided rice assistance to 21.3 million beneficiaries. It also doled out cash assistance of Rp200 thousand (around US$12.83) per month from November to December 2023 to a total of 18.8 million targeted beneficiaries.

To strengthen micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) amid high interest rates, the government encouraged the accelerated disbursal of low-interest people's business credit (KUR) through weekend banking services to reach the target of Rp297 trillion (around US$19.07 billion) in 2023.

He underlined that what needs to be anticipated in 2024 is the impact of the expected global economic slowdown on sectors that rely on the global market, such as Indonesian furniture exports.



Translator: Bayu Saputra, Raka Adji
Editor: Arie Novarina
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