The country’s long-running food estate ambition is entering a new and larger phase with the conversion of vast forest areas in South Papua into non-forest zones, or areas for other uses (APL). Initially framed as a strategy to achieve rice self-sufficiency, the program has now expanded under President Prabowo Subianto to also pursue energy security, with palm oil positioned as a key commodity to serve both goals.

The appointment of Thomas Djiwandono, a nephew of President Prabowo Subianto , as deputy governor of Bank Indonesia, has raised the specter of nepotism making a comeback in Indonesian politics.

Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) has temporarily frozen Indonesia’s February market status review and warned of a potential downgrade from Emerging Market to Frontier Market, citing persistent structural and governance weaknesses in the equity market. Key concerns include opaque ownership structures, limited disclosure of ultimate beneficial owners, and significant price distortions in several heavily weighted stocks, particularly conglomerate- and state-owned enterprise-linked names, which have pushed the Jakarta Composite Index (JCI) higher without corresponding improvements in fundamentals.

The National Police appear increasingly emboldened in their bid to consolidate power, as the House of Representatives signals growing support for the force despite persistent public demands for comprehensive reform. Even recent rulings by the Constitutional Court, intended to restrict active-duty officers from holding civilian posts, now seem likely to be circumvented by an unholy alliance of legislative and security interests.

After “greedynomics”, a new label has entered Indonesia’s political–economic vocabulary: “Prabowonomics”. The term made its global debut at the World Economic Forum, where President Prabowo Subianto presented it as the guiding framework for Indonesia’s economic trajectory. While narratives can be curated for international audiences, economic outcomes cannot be scripted. The central question is therefore not how persuasive the narrative sounds, but whether Prabowonomics reflects genuine structural progress or merely repackages ambition and political symbolism in the absence of measurable results.

The government’s decision to revoke 28 natural resource licenses in the wake of the deadly December 2025 floods in Sumatra has drawn praise from environmental activists but has also unsettled the private sector by introducing new regulatory uncertainty. Among the revoked permits was a gold mining license linked to Astra International, intensifying scrutiny from investors and businesses over the state’s willingness to cancel legally issued concessions in response to environmental externalities.

Beef Since Jan. 20, the House of Representatives has been gathering input from academics and civil society groups regarding the proposed revision of the 2017 General Elections Law, formally submitted on Nov. 19, 2024. A central pillar of these discussions is the adoption of a "codification" approach, specifically, the consolidation of disparate election-related regulations into a single, unified political law package.