Government Likely to Face Last Year's Economic Issue in 2016

Liputan6.com, Jakarta While it is true that Indonesia’s insurmountable natural and human resources allow for the archipelago state to hasten its economic progress, its maximum utilization is still very lacking. Additionally, volatile global economy as well as other domestic factors continues to hamper the nation’s development economically.

Both Indonesian government and Bank Indonesia (BI) are now preoccupied with addressing issues relating to national economic boost and national currency stability.

It is learned that with the current economic climate, Indonesia cannot yet have the best of both worlds; that is to have its economy progressing at rapid pace or to have a stabilized rupiah currency.

It remains a dilemma hitherto for them, whether they should focus on spurring economic growth or to shift their concentration more on stabilizing the currency.

Economic expert of PT Samuel Aset Manajemen Lana Soelistianingsih says that both national economic slow-down, together with destabilized rupiah currency put the Indonesian government and Bank Indonesia in a relatively difficult position throughout the period of 2015.

These two main actors in the economic sector have previously sought to place more of their concentration on stabilizing the national currency rate.

“Stabilizing our nation’s currency rate against dollar is far more urgent as it carries impacts to domestic economic growth. This is because issue of volatile currency rupiah rate is a problem that needs to be sorted out quickly, whereas economic growth has been given a timeframe for it to relied to in terms of its attainment and therefore we have to focus on what needs to be concentrated on in the shorter term. We have to make sure our rupiah is stable first before we can assure that our economy is growing,” Lana spoke to journalists on Friday 15 January 2016.

Lana predicts that the dilemma will continue to haunt both Bank Indonesia and the government this year. However, both are working to their maximum potential to assure that, even in gradual manner, that the problem can be sorted out.