Indonesia's Budget Deficit is Among the Lowest in the World

Indonesia had one of the lowest budget deficits in the world over the past five years (2011-2016). In a public lecture delivered by the Minister of Finance, Sri Mulyani, at Syiah Kuala University, Aceh, Indonesia's average budget deficit over the past five years was approximately 2 percent. Indonesia's deficit was lower than that of Italy, India, and Japan.

Despite this relatively small budget deficit, Indonesia's economy grew at an average of 5.5 percent over the past five years. This is higher than the growth rates of other countries such as Malaysia (5.3 percent), Australia (2.7 percent), the United States (2.1 percent), and Thailand (2.9 percent).

Through prudent and productive deficit management and financing, Indonesia recorded one of the lowest deficit and debt ratios in the world. Nevertheless, Indonesia achieved one of the highest economic growth rates globally, averaging over 5 percent in the last five years.