TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo asked Indonesians to be thankful for the country’s economic growth that remained over 5 percent. This comes after the country’s 5.02 percent economic growth in 2019 compared to the previous year’s 5.17 percent growth.

“We must be thankful that the economic growth has stayed above 5 percent [while] other countries are not only seeing declines, but also downturns. We must be grateful, if not then we are being kufur nikmat (unappreciative),” said the President at the State Palace on Wednesday, February 5.

According to Jokowi, maintaining a 5 percent growth in the region amidst the global economy is not an easy thing.

“So let’s compare with other countries, especially considering our position in the G20. We rank second in terms of growth,” he said.

The president showed his appreciation for the good communication between Central Bank and the government; “We must be thankful that a number of rating agencies have contributed to our improvement.”

He also acknowledged the Japan Credit Rating which rated Indonesia highly this year. Jokowi views this as the international community’s optimism for Indonesia.

Previously, the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) stated Indonesia’s economic growth in 2019 dropped to 5.02 percent due to the manufacturing industry’s dwindling fate, even though this industry holds a major role in determining the state economy.

DEWI NURITA