Farida Susanty, Jakarta – The Public Works and Public Housing Ministry acknowledged on Thursday it had not performed its best as it had only spent 12.38 percent of its allocation from the 2017 state budget.

The ministry is responsible for the development of most state infrastructure projects. The ministry was allocated Rp 101.4 trillion (US$7.6 billion) this year, slightly higher than the Rp 91.21 trillion allocated in the 2016 state budget.

Ministry secretary-general Anita Firmanti, however, expressed optimism that in the coming months her office would spend much more as a result of an increase in construction activities on infrastructure projects.

"This [spending] is better than last year. It's still early in the year. Some companies have not taken their down payments for the projects," she said on Thursday, adding that it was normal for spending to be slow early in the year and it would be different from mid- to end-year.

She said the ministry would closely monitor infrastructure projects to ensure they adhered to deadlines set by the government. (bbn)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2017/04/20/public-works-ministry-spends-only-12-38-of-budget.html