We are optimistic that the economy in 2017 will grow above the 5.1 percent baseline."
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Indonesias chief economic minister Darmin Nasution expressed optimism here on Wednesday that the countrys economy could grow higher than projected at 5.1 percent this year with government support and policies.

"We are optimistic that the economy in 2017 will grow above the 5.1 percent baseline," he stated.

He added that the efforts to boost growth would be done through the acceleration of development of infrastructure, issuance of deregulation package, boosting industrialization process and improving the quality of vocational education.

"The new policies, mainly vocational education development, agrarian reform and policies, to improve equal distribution are believed to be able to boost growth," he noted.

Through the improvement, Darmin said he was optimistic that the countrys economic growth in 2017 could reach between 5.2 and 5.4 percent, or higher than last year which was at 5.02 percent.

Indonesias Central Bureau of Statistics recorded 5.02 percent growth in 2016, which was driven by an improvement in household consumption.

The growth was higher than 4.88 percent in 2015 and 5.01 percent in 2014.

Household consumption contributed to the highest in 2016, reaching 56.5 percent, followed by gross fixed capital formation at 32.57 percent and exports at 19.08 percent.

In spatial terms, the economy in 2016 was still dominated by Java, contributing up to 58.49 percent to the GDP, followed by Sumatra at 22.03 percent and Kalimantan at 7.85 percent.

(Reported by Satyagraha/Uu.H-YH/INE/KR-BSR/A014)

Editor: Priyambodo RH
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