"We are now thinking about how to make a new pension system which will not burden the state budget," he said here on Monday.
Azwar noted that currently the government had to provide Rp60 trillion of pension money every year for 130,000 former employees. Ten years from now, he added, the figure would rise to Rp160 trillion, which would become a big burden for the state budget.
When asked whether there was any specific strategy that the government would employ to reduce the burden, the minister said he was still discussing the matter with his ministry officials.
"We need to develop the pension system in such a way that it will be beneficial for both former government employees and the government," Azwar explained.
Earlier, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had expressed concern about how the current pension system was putting increasing burden on the state budget.
"In order to have a healthy financial system, we must set the budget in accordance with our capability," he stated. (A051/INE/BSR/YH)
Editor: Kunto Wibisono
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