"Regional governments should not think like ordinary bureaucrats but think like entrepreneurs, finding opportunities in their regions to increase the regional revenue," he told the press at the office of the Ministry of Finance in Jakarta on Tuesday.
He highlighted the importance of increasing the regional revenue since that would automatically bolster a region's fiscal condition.
The minister also appealed to regional governments to streamline spending, including cutting down on meetings that eat up a lot of budget and reducing the recruitment of employees and contract-based employees.
Some alternative steps that can be taken to streamline spending are to encourage digitalization and urge the community to develop micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs). Another way is to create a healthy ecosystem for the private sector.
Accelerating digitalization could provide many benefits, such as building efficiency and reducing the potential for illegal levies, as well as helping regional governments make decisions quickly.
In this regard, the central government is awarding the regional digitalization acceleration and expansion teams in regions that manage to accelerate digital transformation.
"If possible, regions that do not carry out digitalization should be given sanctions, such as a reduction in budget and a public reprimand," he said.
Earlier, Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto said that 480, or 87.9 percent, regional governments have reached the digital level, based on the Regional Government Transaction Electronification Index (IETPD) in the first half of 2024.
Meanwhile, 49 regional governments and 16 regional governments are in the advanced and developing levels, respectively.
Next year, 100 percent of regional governments are expected to reach the digital level.
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Translator: Imamatul Silfia, Raka Adji
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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