IMF chief praises President Jokowi's economic policy reforms

"It will be great to witness in person the reforms that are taking place," Lagarde said in a press conference at the IMF Headquarters in Washington DC, United States, on Thursday local time.

Lagarde made the statement in response to the upcoming 2018 Annual Meetings of the IMF and the World Bank in Bali, Indonesia.

According to Lagarde, President Joko Widodo’s policy reforms, particularly the reduction in fuel subsidies, have created fiscal space for developing infrastructure and public services such as education and health.

Indonesia is also considered to have commendable resilience due to its economy continuing to grow amidst the ongoing slowdown in global economic growth.

"I find the meetings [in Indonesia] -- which will be very important for the region, because it's one of the parts of the world that continues to grow quite strongly, where regional cooperation through ASEAN, ASEAN+3 and others," Lagarde said.

The IMF Managing Director also mentioned the importance of the Chiang Mai Initiative (CMI) cooperation carried out by ASEAN+3 (10 ASEAN countries + Japan, South Korea, China), which makes it possible for member countries to swap local currencies with US dollars in a maximum amount that is the member country's contribution multiplied by a multiplier number.

"There is a lot of development in terms of regional cooperation that can be illustrated by Indonesia," she said.

The IMF believes that regional cooperation is important for creating an inclusive economy that will grow together without leaving out the others.

The IMF and the World Bank will hold the Annual Meetings in 2016 from October 7-9, amidst the ongoing slowdown in global economic growth.

The International Monetary Fund announced that world economic growth in the fourth quarter of 2016 was 3.1 percent and is projected to rise to 3.4 percent in 2017.

Editor: AA Ariwibowo

http://www.antaranews.com/berita/588853/direktur-imf-puji-refomasi-kebijakan-ekonomi-presiden-jokowi