Minister Purbaya: Prabowo Would Approve Wider Deficit Only in a Crisis

March 16, 2026 | 08:34 pm

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Minister of Finance, Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa, stated that there has been no decision yet on exceeding the budget deficit threshold of the State Revenue and Expenditure Budget (APBN) by more than 3 percent. The government has prepared a series of scenarios, but the final decision lies with President Prabowo Subianto.

Purbaya stated that he is not aware of plans to issue a Government Regulation in Lieu of Law (Perppu). "It depends on the president's decision later," he said after a meeting at the Coordinating Ministry for the Economy office in Jakarta on Monday, February 16, 2026.

The national treasurer stated that the government is currently focusing on budget optimization. This includes revenue and budget management as well as state funds to support economic growth.

Purbaya also explained whether the president will approve widening the deficit. "In normal circumstances, no. Earlier, in times of crisis, yes," he said.

According to him, a crisis indicator occurs when the economy, including the global economy, is already in a recession and there is no other way to fix it.

Additionally, Purbaya confirmed that the budgets of priority programs, including the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) program, will not be cut in order to reduce expenses. However, the government is considering budget efficiency for ministries and agencies.

According to the law, the APBN deficit cannot exceed 3 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP). However, the idea of widening the deficit emerged after Coordinating Minister for the Economy Airlangga Hartarto presented three worst-case scenarios for the APBN deficit due to the war in the Middle East.

In a cabinet meeting at the State Palace in Jakarta, Airlangga calculated that in the event of war, the APBN could have a deficit of 3.18 to 4.06 percent of the GDP.

"This means that, in these various scenarios, it is difficult for us to maintain the 3 percent deficit unless we want to cut expenses and reduce economic growth," Airlangga said on Friday, March 13, 2026, as quoted from the President's Secretariat's YouTube channel.

Read: Indonesia Re-Evaluates E-Commerce Rules to Curb Online Fraud

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