Driving National Economy Towards More Transformative Growth, Minister Airlangga Forges Global Cooperation

Jakarta, INTI - Entering the middle of 2024, the national economy's condition shows further strengthening with the recent achievement of first-quarter economic growth in 2024 reaching 5.11% (yoy), even higher than the first quarter of 2023 and the fourth quarter of 2023, which were 5.04% (yoy) each. The solid economic growth figures have also received affirmation from various rating agencies, indicating a positive assessment that Indonesia's economic resilience remains intact, supported by high and stable economic growth.

During the Economics Seminar of the Association of Alumni of Kanisius College Jakarta (PAKKJ), on Saturday (11/05), Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto conveyed that the Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), as one of the leading indicators in the economy, remains consistently at an expansive level of 52.9 points. This figure is also higher compared to several other countries such as China at 51.4, South Korea at 49.4, and Malaysia at 49 points.

Furthermore, the achievement of national economic growth regionally also indicates strong development with higher growth than the first quarter of 2023 in several regions, namely Kalimantan, Maluku and Papua, as well as Bali and Nusa Tenggara. Additionally, the Maluku-Papua region experienced significant growth reaching 12.15%, driven by mining activities in the area, while Java still maintains its role as the highest contributor to the National GDP at 57.70%.

With the continuous achievement of economic growth, the Government through the Final Draft of the National Long-Term Development Plan (RPJPN) 2024-2045 has established a vision of Indonesia Emas 2045, with targets to be achieved by 2045 including a Nominal GDP of USD9.8 trillion and a Per Capita GNI of USD30,300. To realize the target of becoming a High Income Country by 2045, annual economic growth must be driven in the range of 6-7% accompanied by continuous growing investments.

"One way is certainly to drive our economy to be more transformative, and for it to be transformative, we need to forge global cooperation. Indonesia has successfully hosted the G20 and we are highly respected globally because we have soft power potential within the G20, as international diplomatic strength is economic strength," said Minister Airlangga.

In addition to playing a role in the G20 Presidency in 2022, Minister Airlangga also mentioned that Indonesia has demonstrated its presence and achievements on the global economic stage through the Chairmanship of ASEAN in 2023, as well as being active in various economic initiatives such as the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) and the Asian Zero Emission Community (AZEC). Furthermore, through strategic partnerships such as the Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IEU-CEPA) and the Indonesia-Korea Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IK-CEPA), Indonesia proves its capability to be a significant player in navigating the global economy.

In addition to membership in various international forums, Indonesia also strengthens its position by applying for membership in The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Indonesia becomes the first Southeast Asian country and the third in Asia after Japan and Korea to achieve Open for Accession Discussion status to become a full member of the OECD.

"Why is OECD important? Because we want the next reform, our first reform during Covid, we revised more than 60 laws through the Job Creation Law, and the next implementation will be through the OECD. They have a lot of data and standards, and we already have them too. We are very ready for international standards. We hope our growth will increase further, and with OECD membership, there will be a lot of investments coming in," concluded Minister Airlangga.

Also present at the event were Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Pahala Mansury, Former Minister of Finance Chatib Basri, Economic Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Haryo Limanseto, Chairman of the Advisory Board of the Association of Alumni of Kanisius College Jakarta (PPAKKJ) Chris Kanter, GoTo Group Chief Executive Officer Patrick Walujo, Chairman of PPAKKJ James Widyabudhi Prakarsa, and the Rector of Kanisius College represented by Father Hendra Sutedja.