Nepotism: Easy money from meat import quota

Apr 16, 2026 | Market, Politics

Lutfi Hasan Ishaaq, then president of Islamic party PKS was sentenced 16 years prison in 2013 for his role in bribery related to allotment of import quota for beef. This was possible because PKS cadres controlled ministry of agriculture for 10 years (2014-2024). Will...

BGN’s new offices

Apr 16, 2026 | Market, Politics

The National Nutrition Agency (BGN) plans to expand its organizational structure this year by establishing regional offices and service offices (KPPG) across Indonesia. The regional offices will handle coordination at the provincial level, while the KPPG will operate...

Not a military regime—yet

Apr 16, 2026 | Politics

The decision to gather regional legislative leaders for a multi-day retreat at the Akademi Militer Magelang raises a question that should not be dismissed too quickly: what exactly is being consolidated—policy coordination, or political control? The retreat is framed...

Outsourced regulation, imported crisis

Apr 16, 2026 | Law, Market

The Rp755 billion fine imposed by Komisi Pengawas Persaingan Usaha (KPPU) on 97 peer-to-peer lending platforms has triggered predictable outrage. Industry players argue the decision misreads the nature of fintech lending. Lawmakers hint the ruling could still be...

Muktamar NU 2026

Apr 16, 2026 | Politics

By any measure, the 2026 congress of Nahdlatul Ulama will not be routine. It is shaping up to be a defining moment—not only for the world’s largest Muslim organization, but for the direction of moral and political landscape. Beneath the formal language of...

US-Indonesia/-China: Economic implications

Apr 16, 2026 | Market, Politics

Prabowo administration made some controversial decisions with huge economic implications going forward. On February 19, 2026, Prabowo signed two agreements during his meetings with Donald Trump: the US-Indonesia Agreement of Reciprocal Trade (ART), Indonesia joining...

More holidays but weaker performance at Jaya Ancol’s First Quarter

Apr 16, 2026 | Market

Pembangunan Jaya Ancol (PJAA), operator of the largest amusement park in northern shore of Jakarta, generated sales revenues of Rp207.6 billion in the first quarter of 2026, down slightly from Rp211 billion in the corresponding period last year. First quarter data is...

Nepotism: Easy money from garlic import quota

Apr 16, 2026 | Market

Indonesia heavily relies on import of garlic with annual import quota of more than 600,000 tons. Companies granted the quota, in theory, are required to have local plantation with annual output of 5% (30,000 tons).  One businessman claiming to have local production of...

Cloud is getting expensive—who pays for the AI race?

Apr 15, 2026 | Market

Oracle, one of the world’s largest enterprise software vendors, is ramping up investments in AI-driven cloud infrastructure at an unprecedented scale. Reports suggest tens of billions of dollars are being funneled into building data centers capable of handling massive...

Decentralizing truth: When data becomes power in villages

Apr 15, 2026 | Law, Politics

Lawmakers are once again attempting to fix a chronic governance problem: unreliable data. Through the proposed Satu Data Indonesia Bill (RUU SDI), the House of Representatives—particularly the Badan Legislasi DPR(Baleg)—seeks to elevate villages from passive data...