Indonesia's 78th TNI Anniversary: How Much Has Indonesia's Military Budget Been Over the Last 23 Years?

The 78th Anniversary of the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) was commemorated at Monas, Central Jakarta, on Thursday (5/10/2023). President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) served as the reviewing officer.

The peak of the ceremony, which began at 8:00 AM WIB, included an address and the bestowal of honors by Jokowi. In his speech, Jokowi urged the TNI to be more prudent in managing the budget for the rejuvenation and modernization of main defense equipment systems (alutsista).

Citing *Katadata*, Jokowi pressed for savings in TNI alutsista spending in line with the government's efforts to mitigate the potential impact of the global food crisis caused by climate change.

"Modernization of alutsista is crucial. But state finances, our state budget (APBN) are very limited," Jokowi said while delivering his address at the 78th TNI Anniversary commemoration at Monas, Jakarta on Thursday (5/10/2023).

So, how much has been spent on military needs, included in Indonesia's defense budget since 2000?

(See also: Number of Active Indonesian Soldiers Ranked 8th in Asia)

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) compiled the figures for Indonesia's defense budget. Over the past 23 years, this defense budget has fluctuated, but has been dominated by increases.

In 2000, the allocated budget was Rp7.3 trillion. The value often increased until 10 years later, although it experienced a slight decrease in 2004-2005.

The budget increased significantly in 2012-2013, from Rp61.3 trillion to Rp87.7 trillion. Unfortunately, in 2014 it decreased to Rp82.2 trillion.

Actually, after 2012, the difference and increase in the budget were quite significant. Even so, military spending has exceeded Rp100 trillion since 2015 until the last record in 2022.

SIPRI reported that Indonesia's military budget in 2021 reached Rp125.9 trillion. In 2022, the budget soared to Rp150.3 trillion.

Note that the 2022 budget is the result of *Databoks*' adjustment of SIPRI data with the APBN from the Ministry of Finance (Kemenkeu).

According to the Ministry of Finance, the defense budget allocation is Rp135.3 trillion for 2024. This figure is down 6.5% from the 2023 outlook, which reached Rp144.7 trillion.

The budget allocation for the ministry headed by Prabowo Subianto is the second largest among other ministries/institutions (K/L).

(See also: Defense Ministry Budget Second Largest in 2024 RAPBN, Here's the Spending Trend)