Budget Efficiency: A Wise Step to Encourage Economic Growth and National Development
Jakarta – In an effort to manage state finances more effectively and efficiently, President Prabowo Subianto has instructed a state budget cut of IDR 306.69 trillion for 2025. This policy aims to divert funds previously used for less productive budget items to sectors that can be directly benefited by the community and support economic growth. This step is a follow-up to the results of monitoring the implementation of the APBN closing book at the Ministry of Finance at the end of 2024.
Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati explained that President Prabowo’s decision for budget efficiency is a strategic step that not only reduces the burden on the state but also encourages economic growth.
“Funds from efficiency will be allocated for productive spending that focuses on national development, food self-sufficiency, the health sector, and programs that can be directly felt by the community. One of them is the Free Nutritious Meals program which aims to improve the quality of life of the community, especially for underprivileged groups,” said Sri Mulyani.
In Presidential Instruction Number 1 of 2025, President Prabowo emphasized that the funds that were cut would be diverted to support priority programs that are directly related to people’s welfare and economic growth.
“The main focus of this policy is on strengthening the industrial sector and creating jobs. The budget reallocation also aims to facilitate industrial downstreaming, so that it can create new jobs and encourage the competitiveness of the national industry in the global market,” he said.
In this regard, this budget efficiency policy has also received appreciation from various parties, one of which is the Economist and Public Policy Expert at UPN Jakarta, Achmad Nur Hidayat. According to him, this policy is an important initial step in more optimal state financial management.
“The budget efficiency instructed by President Prabowo will have a positive impact on the country. In addition to reducing the burden on the state, this policy can also encourage economic growth by optimizing the use of available funds,” he said.
Meanwhile, Political and Government Observer of Jenderal Achmad Yani University (Unjani) Cimahi, Arlan Siddha also agreed that budget cuts made by the government would not reduce the effectiveness of work programs. In fact, budget cuts in less productive items such as official travel can provide more space for budgets that are more directly beneficial to the community.
“Budget efficiency does not mean hampering government work programs, but creating new opportunities for more efficient and targeted budget management,” he said.
The budget efficiency policy proposed by President Prabowo shows the government’s commitment to improving the quality of state financial management for the welfare of the people.
“Reallocation of the budget that is more focused on national development and productive sectors will accelerate the development process and encourage the creation of new jobs that will provide long-term benefits for the Indonesian economy,” he concluded.
