ID :
63375
Sat, 05/30/2009 - 22:25
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/63375
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CANDIDATES MUST EXPLAIN WAYS TO ACHIEVE GROWTH TARGETS : ECONOMIST
Jakarta, 30/5 (ANTARA) - Presidential and vice presidential candidates who recently promised certain economic growth rates if they were elected, should explain how, in concrete terms, those targets will be achieved, an economist said.
"These candidates, who envisioned economic growth levels of between seven and 10 percent (by 2014), should not only make promises but also explain in greater detail how those targets will be reached," Faisal Basri, en economist at the University of Indonesia (UI), said here Saturday.
Regardless of the target figures they mentioned, the candidates' promises meant nothing to the people, if the ways to achieve those targets were not elaborated on, he said.
He said, given the present conditions of Indonesia's State Budget, the country would need as much as Rp1,500 trillion in funds per year to achieve an economic growth rate of just six percent with an inflation rate of about five percent
"Where on earth could this country obtain that amount of money. This is what the candidates must explain to the public," he said.
If the State Budget and state income were managed efficiently, revenue from taxes would total at most Rp160 trillion to Rp180 trillion a year, he said.
To attain the projected growth figures, foreign investment and loans were absolutely needed, he added.
"No country in the world can do without foreign loans. We still need foreign loans although we must strive to reduce our dependence on foreign aid," he said.
According to Basri, the present government was less inclined to seek new foreign loans than previous administrations.
He admitted the government was spending huge amounts to repay foreign loans but this was because old debts had matured at the same time. "Overall, however, Indonesia's foreign debt is continuously tending to diminish," he said.***
"These candidates, who envisioned economic growth levels of between seven and 10 percent (by 2014), should not only make promises but also explain in greater detail how those targets will be reached," Faisal Basri, en economist at the University of Indonesia (UI), said here Saturday.
Regardless of the target figures they mentioned, the candidates' promises meant nothing to the people, if the ways to achieve those targets were not elaborated on, he said.
He said, given the present conditions of Indonesia's State Budget, the country would need as much as Rp1,500 trillion in funds per year to achieve an economic growth rate of just six percent with an inflation rate of about five percent
"Where on earth could this country obtain that amount of money. This is what the candidates must explain to the public," he said.
If the State Budget and state income were managed efficiently, revenue from taxes would total at most Rp160 trillion to Rp180 trillion a year, he said.
To attain the projected growth figures, foreign investment and loans were absolutely needed, he added.
"No country in the world can do without foreign loans. We still need foreign loans although we must strive to reduce our dependence on foreign aid," he said.
According to Basri, the present government was less inclined to seek new foreign loans than previous administrations.
He admitted the government was spending huge amounts to repay foreign loans but this was because old debts had matured at the same time. "Overall, however, Indonesia's foreign debt is continuously tending to diminish," he said.***
