REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, MEDAN —  President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) asserted that the budget that spent by government for organizing the 2018 Annual Meeting of International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank (World Bank) in Bali was utilized for building infrastructures. He believed the existance new infrastructures would have a positive impact in the future.

Jokowi said government budget for the IMF-WB Annual Meeting among others was used to expand the aircraft parking lot or apron at Bali Airport and to build tunnel to avoid congestion. He stressed that the budget spent by the government would have a positive impact for society, because it can be used for the long term.

“It means the facilities will continue to be used,” said Jokowi on Monday (Oct 8).

Jokowi emphasized that the annual event was funded by the IMF-World Bank, including hotel fees and meals. In fact, he said Indonesia can promote regional tourism so as to increase the number of tourists.

“They pay for themselves, so we hope this will strengthen our promotion for Bali," Jokowi added.

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According to him, the big event actually became the target of other countries because the number of guests could reach 15 thousand people. The event should have an impact, at least give a good image to the country as venue of the meeting.

Earlier, Prabowo Subianto - Sandiaga Uno coalition assessed 2018 Annual Meeting of IMF-WB which will be held on Oct 8 to Oct 14 is too luxurious. They also urged the government to save the budget to be distributed to victims of natural disasters in Palu, Donggala, and Lombok.

As the host of the big event, Indonesian Government has allocated around Rp 855,5 billion. The number has also been agreed by House of Representatives (DPR) since early 2017.

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