How much current debt does Indonesia have?

Question

Has the amount of debt been increasing or decreasing? Are they still taking loans from IMF, World Bank, and other foreign sources?

Thanks in Advance!

Answer 1

$146.92

Answer 2

Indonesia

April 2007

Total external debt: $141 billion

Total external debt payments: Indonesia gives $20 billion each year to the rich world in debt payments.

UK debt: Indonesia owes around £750 million to the UK

Population: 218 million

Poverty: Around half of all Indonesians, more than 100 million people, live on less than $2 a day.*

Percentage of adults who can read and write: 88%

Average life expectancy: 67

Total health spending: $1.5 billion a year*

Where did Indonesia's debt come from?

Indonesia's former dictator General Suharto borrowed heavily from the time he seized power in 1967 until his fall in 1998. Rich country creditors were keen to fund Suharto, an avowed 'anti-communist', even though his extensive corruption and brutal oppression were well-documented. The World Bank lent the Suharto regime approximately $30 billion during this time. Suharto is estimated to have stolen more from his country than any other leader in history: up to $35 billion.

Much of Indonesia's debt is paying off the cost of arms sales. The UK government insured large amounts of arms sales to Indonesia by British companies, even after evidence emerged that Suharto was using these weapons against unarmed Indonesians.

The Asian financial crisis of 1997 made it increasingly difficult for Indonesia to pay off its 'debts'. The rapid fall in the value of Indonesia's currency also meant that the debts (which have to be paid off in foreign currency like US dollars) became twice as expensive.

The Indonesian people are paying off this huge and illegitimate debt, almost entirely incurred through loans recklessly - or self-interestedly - given to a brutal and corrupt former dicator, at a rate of $56 million every day.