VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

VOINews, Jakarta - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has asked ministry and government agency officials to intensify efforts to boost consumption in order to maintain positive national economic growth in the second half of 2023.

"Ensure that economic growth remains positive in the second semester of 2023. What we need to do is to boost household consumption. I believe you all know what needs to be done," he told the officials on Monday.

Speaking at the cabinet's plenary session at the Presidential Palace, Jokowi also asked officials to maintain stability in the prices of necessities, ensure food availability, and control regional inflation.

"You should also ensure that investment targets are met; this is important. Moreover, ensure the availability of fertilizers and maintain stability in the monetary and banking sectors; these are also important," he added.

Jokowi mentioned that the Indonesian nation should be grateful as national economic growth has remained steadily above 5 percent for six consecutive quarters.

As of July 2023, the World Bank has reclassified Indonesia as an upper-middle-income country after previously assigning it a lower-middle-income status due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"However, the situation we are facing in the second half of 2023 is not easy, and we should be vigilant regarding several factors," the president cautioned.

He then listed the unstable global situation, weakening trade and economic growth due to geopolitical conflicts, predictions of a global economic slowdown by international organizations, and global interest rate increases as aspects that officials must remain vigilant about.

"Global inflation is still relatively high. Additionally, we can observe the fragmentation of global trade hindering multilateral cooperation, as well as an early indicator showing positive growth in consumption and production in some areas but weakening in others," he added.

Jokowi also urged officials to prevent possible political competition ahead of the 2024 General Elections from hampering the implementation of government programs. (Antaranews)