There are three policy challenges to preserving economic stability, executive secretary of United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN ESCAP), Armida Alisjahbana, has said.

“The first is the widening inequality that could threaten social cohesion and stability,” she said during the opening of the ISEI Congress XXI, held virtually here on Tuesday.

Next is the structural disruption due to post-COVID-19 transformation, she added.

Then, there is the development of digitalization amid the COVID-19 pandemic that will affect economic opportunity and the formation of human resources in the future, she pointed out. “The problem is that there is a gap in digitalization development between developed nations and Indonesia, in which Indonesia’s technological access is still unequal, which results in less-than-effective studying and working from home,” Alisjahbana explained.

Thus, Indonesia must not just focus on recovering its economy to make it stable and sustainable in the long term, but build a resilient, inclusive, and sustainable economic model as well, she advised.

The government has actually learned that Indonesia’s economy should be fortified to withstand COVID-19 disruptions, she added.

In addition to tackling virus spread, the government must also reinforce the economy to thwart non-economic disruptions, such as natural disasters and climate change, Alisjahbana said.

Furthermore, countries in Asia and the Pacific are moving in the right direction by prioritizing the reinforcement of public health and economic recovery, she opined.

Nations in Southeast Asia are also willing to collaborate in handling COVID-19, she added. (

Source: Antara News