Sri Mulyani: Economy Recovers Faster During Pandemic than in '98 Crisis

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesia's Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said that the country is among developing nations with the fastest economic recovery during the Covid-19 pandemic. She said that the economy is recovering faster now compared to when Indonesia was struck by the 1998 financial crisis.

"To us, this is an excellent result in terms of economy and policies that we learned from our own experiences. But we are also accelerating efforts to navigate through the pandemic, contract implications, and prospects of recoveries," she said during a side event of the G20 Presidency, streamed online on Wednesday, February 16.

In 2021, the minister said, the Indonesian government spent some US$45.9 billion or 23.6 percent of the year's entire Capex to fully support recovery efforts. As a result, Indonesia's economy grew 3.65 percent in 2021, rebounding from 2020's 2.07 percent contraction.

Sri said that recoveries have been happening in all aspects of the economy, from supply and demand to production and cross-sector industries. Exports have also played an important role in reviving the economy, driven by global recoveries.

Strong growths, she said, were recorded in essential sectors, such as manufacturing, trade, and mining. Commodity prices have also improved.

"Indonesia's economic output has exceeded pre-pandemic levels," she said.

Nevertheless, Sri Mulyani said the government is still pushing to execute policies as effectively as possible. Efforts of economic recovery, she said, still require the support of government policies, especially from a fiscal perspective.

Read: Economic Recovery Spread Evenly Except in Bali, Says Minister Sri Mulyani

MUHAMMAD HENDARTYO