Purbaya Responds to Government Debt Surpassing IDR 10,000 Trillion

Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa has responded to the government’s total debt, which surpassed Rp 10,000 trillion as of June 2026, equivalent to 41 percent of the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

He believes the debt ratio could still decline, given that the government’s total debt currently remains below the 60 percent limit.

As such, Purbaya said his ministry will continue to monitor the development of government debt until the end of 2026.

“We will see how growth looks at the end of the year; it should be able to fall a little further. Because the year is not over yet,” Purbaya said at the Ministry of Finance in Jakarta on Wednesday, 12 August 2026.

He said the amount of government debt must be viewed on a continuous basis, in line with the condition of national economic growth.

Therefore, Purbaya confirmed that his ministry will tighten the state budget (APBN) deficit so that it remains below the minimum threshold of 3 percent.

“The strategy is that we will limit the deficit so it does not get too high,” he said.

On the other hand, Purbaya stressed that his ministry will also optimise tax collection and revenue, without having to raise taxes or create new types of taxes.

“We will make our tax collection more effective, not raise taxes. But we will clean up the way we operate using taxes,” he said.