"We are still working on it. We are going to soon finish formulating the draft law on rupiah redenomination, after which there will be a public discussion," he said after attending the 66th commemoration of "Hari Oeang" (Money Day) here on Tuesday.
"It is important to raise public awareness of the redenomination plan, because the objective of redenomination is not to reduce the currency's value, but only to simplify the nominal value of money," Agus explained.
"Currency redenomination is really just a process of simplifying the nominal value of money and does not devalue it. This is what we need to explain to the public," he added.
Agus expressed optimism that the Indonesian people would have a clear understanding of the subject by the time the government tabled the currency redenomination bill in the parliament.
"We`ll talk about it openly so there is no misunderstanding when the bill is tabled," he said.
The minister added that currency redenomination would make the rupiah "more valuable and aligned with the currencies of other countries".
"At present, the rupiah among global currencies with the largest nominal value," Agus noted.
Earlier, Bank Indonesia Governor Darmin Nasution expressed hope that the policy on rupiah redenomination would be implemented soon.
"We have prepared the necessary files as well as the strategy, but there is still a long process to deal with," Nasution said.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2012
