“Businesses expect social aid and stimulus spending to be accelerated to improve the people’s purchasing power,” Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) chairman Hariyadi Sukamdani said in a statement on Thursday after the association held its two-day national working and consultation meeting.

The association also asked the Financial Services Authority (OJK) to extend its loan restructuring relaxation policy for the next one to two years to help companies maintain their cash flow amid the pandemic.

The coronavirus outbreak has severely hit the Indonesian economy as its gross domestic product (GDP) shrank 5.32 percent annually in the second quarter, the worst since 1999, due to falling household spending and investment.

The government has allocated Rp 695.2 trillion (US$47.38 billion) from the state budget to fund its COVID-19 response, which includes efforts to strengthen the healthcare system, social aid and an economic recovery program, among other things.

However, the stimulus disbursement has been lagging. The government had spent only 21.7 percent of the budget as of Aug. 6, at a time when accelerated spending was needed most. Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati said in late June that several administrative issues had hampered the government’s efforts to disburse the COVID-19 funds swiftly.

Apindo deputy chairwoman Shinta Kamdani said members of the association faced roadblocks when trying to access the government’s stimulus, highlighting government institutions’ weak coordination. 

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