Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto said efficiency measures would be needed to reduce the country's budget deficit. -- PHOTO: REUTERS
JAKARTA (Reuters): Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto on Friday (Aug 15) said his budget for 2026 would be designed to ensure the South-East Asian country was strong, independent and prosperous, as he delivered his first speech on fiscal policy to Parliament.
The budget proposal is the first developed by Prabowo’s administration after he took office in October 2024.
The 2025 budget was prepared by his predecessor, Joko Widodo.
Prabowo has pledged to lift spending as he seeks to raise economic growth to 8 per cent during his five-year term and deliver on his campaign platform of improving welfare and achieving food and energy self-sufficiency.
In his address, Prabowo said the 2026 budget deficit was seen at 2.48 per cent of gross domestic product.
He said efficiency measures would need to be taken to reduce the gap and vowed to have no deficit by 2027 or 2028.
For 2026, he proposed to spend 335 trillion rupiah (S$26.3 billion) on his flagship programme to deliver free meals to 82.9 million students, children and pregnant women.
Prabowo allotted 171 trillion rupiah for the free meals programme this year, which he said has reached about 20 million recipients.
He also promised budgetary support to decarbonise Indonesia's electricity, saying he wanted the country to use 100 per cent renewable power sources in the next ten years or earlier. Indonesia currently relies on coal for over half of its power generation.
In his address, Prabowo, a former defence minister and special forces commander, also said Indonesia must modernise its military hardware, adding his country had rare earths deposits that were vital to modern defence. -- REUTERS
