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TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesian President Prabowo Soebianto has requested the government's budget for the 2025 State Budget (APBN) and Regional Budgets (APBD) to be cut by Rp306.69 trillion. The details include requesting K/L budgets to be streamlined by Rp256.1 trillion and Rp50.59 trillion for regional transfers.
The budget cut directive is stated in Presidential Instruction Number 1 of 2025 and the Ministry of Finance's Letter Number S-37/MK.02/2025.
According to the Ministry of Finance's letter, ministers and institution heads are asked to streamline their respective budgets and discuss them with the commission partners in the People's Consultative Assembly (DPR). The results of the revision will be in the form of budget trimming and must be submitted to Minister of Finance (Menkeu) Sri Mulyani Indrawati no later than Friday, February 14, 2025.
Head of Communication and Information Service Bureau of the Ministry of Finance, Deni Sujantoro, stated that the trimmed budget will be withheld. "Budget trimming means that the budget cannot be used yet," Deni told Tempo on Monday, February 3, 2025.
Here are some concerns from several sectors related to the budget cut:
1. Health Sector
The Ministry of Health's budget is also affected by a budget cut of more than Rp19.6 trillion this year. "We were asked to streamline by Rp19,6 trillion. Yesterday we already submitted it to the DPR, so the streamlining of Rp19,6 trillion has been approved," Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin said when met at the Directorate General of Health Services' office, South Jakarta, on Thursday, February 6, 2025.
Initially, the total budget for the Ministry of Health was Rp105.7 trillion. This means that the streamlining conducted is 18.54 percent of the budget ceiling.
Following the meeting with the DPR, the Ministry of Health is currently considering reallocating the already planned programs. They admitted that the streamlining has an impact on several priority programs.
"So there might be a need for some reallocation for those priority programs. From our demands, there are still several priority programs that are not sufficient with the allocated funds," he said.
2. Education Sector
The Education and Teachers Association (P2G) disagrees with the Rp8.01 trillion education budget cut on Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education (Kemendikdasmen).
Head of the Teachers Advocacy Division of P2G, Iman Zanatul Haeri, stated that the budget cut violates mandatory education spending, which obliges a 20 percent education budget allocation from the national budget each year.
Kemendikdasmen has a budget of Rp33.5 trillion in 2025. However, the budget cut policy has reduced the ministry's management to around Rp25.5 trillion. According to Iman, the initial Rp33.5 trillion budget has already made it difficult for the government to implement educational programs. This cut policy will only worsen the situation.
Iman said that this budget cut will disrupt the already established education programs. For example, this will affect the Smart Indonesia Program (PIP) of Kemendikdasmen. While the budget cut is for non-substantial budget categories, it will disrupt performance distribution. "So, if it's said it won't disrupt, it's impossible. It will definitely cause a disruption," he said.
Minister of Primary and Secondary Education, Abdul Mu'ti, stated that the ministry he leads is also affected by the budget cut this year. "There is a cut of Rp8.01 trillion," he said in a written message when contacted by Tempo on Wednesday, February 5, 2025.
Currently, they are further assessing the impact of the budget cut. "I'm not sure which positions have been reduced. We are still evaluating," he said.
3. Public Works Sector
Minister of Public Works Dody Hanggodo stated that the Rp81.38 trillion budget cut is affecting infrastructure projects. This efficiency has led to a budget cut in every Directorate General of the Ministry of Public Works.
"The original budget ceiling of the Ministry of Public Works was Rp110.95 trillion and has been streamlined (cut) by Rp81.38 trillion, remaining at Rp29.57 trillion. Consisting of pure non-rupiah Rp16.31 trillion and pure rupiah Rp13.26 trillion," Dody said in a meeting with the DPR's Commission V at the Parliamentary Complex Senayan on Thursday, February 6, 2025.
Along with the Rp81.38 trillion efficiency, Dody reduced the budgets of the General DIrectorate of Water Resources by Rp27.72 trillion; Directorate General of Highways by Rp24.83 trillion; Directorate General of Spatial Planning by Rp7.75 trillion; and Directorate General of Strategic Infrastructure by Rp20.69 trillion. Then, there is also a cut in management support and other technical tasks amounting to Rp0.39 trillion.
Antara, Ilona Estherina, Hanin Marwah, Hendrik Yaputra, and Riri Rahayu contributed to this report.
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