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Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto (ANTARA)

Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto has said Indonesia's economy has started to move positively again after being badly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic since early March 2020.

"We see that in the third and fourth periods, there has been a positive reversal in which the Purchasing Managers Index or PMI has increased to nearly 50 from 46.9," Airlangga Hartarto said while speaking during a national campaign on face mask wearing held at GBK main stadium, Senayan, Jakarta, on Sunday.

"We can see that our trade has also enjoyed a surplus of over 3 billion US dollars and a year to date of around 8 billion US dollars. And of course these have contributed to the state's reserves," he said, adding that in the capital market, a number of sectors also began to grow and were expected to lead to the domestic economic recovery.

After experiencing the lowest point on April 1, 2020, many sectors now started to grow, such the sector of industry went up 31.85 percent, chemical industry 31 percent, agriculture 28 percent, finance 20 percent, mining 20 percent, consumer goods 18, 5 percent, infrastructure 11.5 percent, and trade 6.7 percent, the coordinating minister pointed out.

"From an economic point of view, the index in the capital market specifically in several sectors, including banking, has increased at a range of 20 to 30 percent," he said.

In addition to, motor vehicle sales, that were previously minus 80 percent, now started to improve to minus 40 percent.

"The government hopes that this trend can be maintained, but we first must take care of the health sector. As the vaccine is still being developed, hence wearing a mask is the main key to our economic recovery," he said.

He emphasized that the national economic recovery during this pandemic must start from the discipline of the community in wearing face masks.

The National Face Mask Campaign Movement was organized by the Committee for the COVID-19 Handling and the National Economic Recovery (PC-PEN) chaired by Coordinating Minister Airlangga Hartarto.

A total of 22,500 face masks from the Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs and 20,000 face masks from the Health Ministry were distributed to people exercising in the GBK area during the campaign.

The government will later also organize campaigns to promote hand washing and maintaining physical distancing. (ANTARA)

President Director of Home Financing Fund Management (PPDPP) Arief Sabaruddin noted in a written statement released on Saturday. ANTARA/HO-Kementerian PUPR

 The Public Works and Housing Ministry will encourage the utilization of the people's products and support industrial estate development to facilitate the nation's economic recovery.

"On average, products developed by the research and development center of the Public Works and Housing Ministry are those of small- and medium-scale businesses. That is what the minister is encouraging. For instance, the construction of instant healthy low-cost houses (RISHA)," President Director of Home Financing Fund Management (PPDPP) Arief Sabaruddin noted in a written statement released on Saturday.

Sabaruddin pointed out that the benefit received by each individual was huge. For instance, the development of a house of type 36 required 138 panels. The labor cost of each panel reached Rp11,000.

Meanwhile, Director General of Public Works and Housing Infrastructure Financing Eko D. Heripoerwanto noted that economic recovery in the housing sector was also conducted through the expedited implementation of subsidized home financing programs, including the home financing liquidity facility (FLPP), interest difference subsidy, and saving-based home financing assistance.

As of August 2020, a total of Rp8.54 trillion of FLPP funding was distributed for 84,080 homes.

In total, Rp52.91 trillion of FLPP funds were distributed between January 2010 and 2020 for 739,682 homes.

Earlier, Public Works and Housing Minister Basuki Hadimuljono had stressed that the home sector should play a major role in mitigating the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The development of housing infrastructures will have a manifold effect on expediting growth in other sectors.  (ANTARA)

Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto. (ANTARA/Desca Natalia/pri)

Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto received personal protective equipment (PPE) worth 2 million Australian dollars provided by the Australian Defense Ministry for the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI) at the Halim Perdanakusuma Airbase in Jakarta on Saturday.

Australian Defense Minister Linda Reynolds handed the PPE assistance, comprising gloves, medical gowns, face masks, and diagnostic thermometers, to Subianto at the airbase. The assistance was transported to Indonesia on a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) C-130 Hercules plane.

Reynolds said Indonesia and Australia are longstanding partners that have strong relations and a long history of cooperation, particularly in times of need.

"COVID-19 brings a new challenge and uncertainty for our two countries. Like the Australian Armed Forces there, TNI plays an important role in supporting the handling of COVID-19 in Indonesia," she said in a statement.

The armed forces of the two countries have also established cooperation and exchanged knowledge on COVID-19 handling, she added.

Meanwhile, Subianto lauded the military cooperation between the two neighboring nations. In addition to assistance for the COVID-19 pandemic, both countries have also frequently held joint exercises, he said.

Australia has invited many TNI officers to study at the Australian military academy, he added.

In return, Indonesia sent personnel to Australia early this year to help fight land and forest fires in New South Wales, he said. (ANTARA)

Chairman of the Indonesia National Air Carriers Association (INACA) Denon Prawiraatmadja (left) and Chairman of the Indonesian Hotels and Restaurants Association (PHRI) Hariyadi Sukamdani (right) after the signing of the cooperation agreement in Badung, Bali on Saturday (Aug 29, 2020). ANTARA/Naufal

The Indonesian Hotels and Restaurants Association (PHRI) and the Indonesia National Air Carriers Association (INACA) agreed on offering affordable and safe tour packages to facilitate recovery of the tourism industry impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The increased traffic of air passengers and hotel occupancy will boost the economy in tourist destination areas after dropping sharply in the past few months owing to the COVID-19 pandemic," PHRI Chairman Hariyadi Sukamdani stated at the signing of the agreement between INACA and PHRI in Badung District, Bali, on Saturday.

Sukamdani noted that the agreement is part of the Safe Travel Campaign conducted by the two associations in the past month.

The PHRI chairman noted that the efforts to increase the number of air passengers and hotel occupancy in tourism destinations should lay emphasis on two issues.

"First, public confidence to fly again can be increased by applying health protocols. Second, in terms of pricing, it must be affordable," he stated.

Sukamdani admitted that the pandemic had dealt a major blow to the economy in regions depending on the tourism sector, including Bali.

"Bali has a total of 140 thousand hotel rooms. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, 80 percent of the hotels were closed. As a consequence, Bali's economy was hit the hardest, clocking minus 10.98 percent in the second quarter," he stated.

Sukamdani has also urged the local government to support the moves taken by the two associations by offering tax relaxation for hotel and airline operators.

The PHRI will also work closely with health authorities to offer health facilities at tourism destinations.

"It would not be impossible to change work from home and school from home into work from hotel and school from the hotel during holidays," Sukamdani pointed out.

INACA Chairman Denon Prawiraatmadja remarked that the association members can hold business-to-business discussions with the PHRI members on the implementation of the agreement.

Prawiraatmadja noted that INACA will continue to conduct the Safe Travel Campaign at several tourism destination areas across the country. He also called on airlines to prepare special health protocols for children. (ANTARA)