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Government delays long-awaited sugary drink excise, again
The government has once again delayed the implementation of the long-awaited excise tax on sweetened beverages despite growing demands to curb rising obesity and diabetes in the country.
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A worker arranges sweetened drinks in a retail supermarket in Jakarta on Dec. 14, 2023. A survey from the Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI) revealed that 58 percent of 800 respondents supported the plan to impose an excise tax on sweetened beverages to control the country's sugar consumption and prevent rising diabetes in children, which increased 70 times in January 2023 than in 2010. (Antara/Cahya Sari)
The government has once again delayed the implementation of the long-awaited excise tax on sweetened beverages despite growing demands to curb rising obesity and diabetes in the country.
During a hearing with the House of Representatives Commission XI overseeing finance on Wednesday, Finance Minister Sri Mulyani said the government would implement the policy in 2025 instead of this year as initially targeted, but did not provide a specific reason for the delay.
"We will implement a sweetened beverages tax next year, in line with the Health Ministry goals to curb the prevalence of diabetes, particularly in children," she said as reported by Tempo.co.
Previously, the ministry's communication and guidance for customs service users director, Nirwala Dwi Heriyanto, said the delay in the excise implementation was due to the "unsupportive" economic situation at the moment.
"Even though we have included the taxes on sweetened drinks and plastic products in the 2025 state budget, we can't implement the excise for certain until the government issues a regulation on the tax," he said.
The Finance Ministry has been entertaining the idea of imposing a tax on sugary drinks since 2009 but progress has been sluggish, mainly because of resistance from business entities.
