TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Social welfare spending grows 53.7 percent on expanded costs, programs
The Finance Ministry says that the increased costs of social welfare programs had prompted higher spending.
Change Size
Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati (Antara/Agung Rajasa)
T
he Finance Ministry has revealed that spending on social welfare reached Rp 60.33 trillion (US$4.26 billion) at the end of May, a year-on-year (yoy) increase of 53.7 percent.
The ministry added that the figure was 60.16 percent of the total spending allocated for social welfare in the 2019 state budget.
Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said over the weekend that the high realization of the budget allocation was due to substantial increases in several aspects of the government's social welfare programs.
“The number [of beneficiaries] has also increased. Therefore, the [budget] realization was also high,” Sri Mulyani said as quoted by kontan.co.id.
The minister explained that Rp 19.4 trillion of the allocation for the Family Hope Program (PKH) was realized through May, compared to Rp 17 trillion in the same period last year. The government also spent Rp 24.3 trillion (90.9 percent) of this year's National Health Insurance (JKN) budget.
Meanwhile, public service spending for government employees reached Rp 163.5 trillion through May, a 26.8 percent yoy increase compared to last year's growth figure of only 6 percent.
“Spending for employees grew significantly this year because of the 5 percent salary increase stipulated in the state budget and the disbursement of the Idul Fitri bonus and the 13th month bonus,” Sri Mulyani said.
In contrast, capital expenditure spending increased a mere 5.9 percent yoy to Rp 29.06 trillion through May from this year's total budget of Rp 189.3 trillion, lower than Rp 203.9 trillion allocated in 2018.
Cumulative spending through May reached Rp 855.9 trillion, or 34.8 percent of the 2019 state budget. (bbn)
