We love IFs. If we can give free meal to 82 million people the economy will grow 8% per annum. If we can build three million homes per annum, we can achieve 8% growth in two years time. If we can build more food estates, we will not only self-sufficient in food supply...

The Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs is preparing to launch SAPA UMKM, a super-application that will soon become the mandatory digital entry point for Indonesia’s 40 million small and medium enterprises. Within the next two months, every micro, small, and medium business will be required to register through this platform in order to be formally recognized and gain access to state programs—from business permits and halal certification to financing, training, and export facilitation.

On August 14, 2025, Fadli Hassbullah Fatba, manager procurement and planning of PT Pertamina Hulu Indonesia, announced pre-qualification tender of a jack-up rig (Indonesian flag) for offshore exploration in Mahakam area, East Kalimantan. 

When the composite index of Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) recently hit a new record, government officials quickly praised fundamentals of the economy. It clearly is an illusion because vast majority of companies with strong fundamentals actually reported stock market losses year-to-date. 

Shares of PT Solusi Sinergi Digital (WIFI) or Surge, indirectly co-owned by Hashim Djojohadikusumo—-brother of President Prabowo Subianto, gained 1.8% to Rp2,770 this morning as the company confirmed interest in acquiring ISP PT Link Net (LINK) Tbk from Axiata Group. At the last quoted price, WIFI was worth Rp14.7 trillion, already twice of LINK (Rp7.3 trillion).

The recent surge in local property taxes (PBB-P2) across several Indonesian regions has ignited widespread public anger. In Pati, Central Java, a planned increase of up to 250 percent triggered massive demonstrations involving tens of thousands of residents. In Cirebon, taxpayers claimed their bills jumped by almost 1,000 percent, while in Jombang, East Java, homeowners saw their annual tax leap from IDR 400,000 to IDR 3.5 million within just two years.

CVC Capital Partners took controlling ownership of Siloam Hospital (SILO) from Lippo Group little less than one year ago. That time, CVC paid Rp2,850 per share. On Tuesday (Aug 19), Siloam, the largest hospital chain in private sector, closed at Rp2,230, inched up 0.45% only. CVC, accordingly, has recorded loss of 21.8%.

“One of our schools in Jakarta is a recipient of the MBG (free meal) program. We have politely refused the program because the students come from middle-up income families. The local government officers, however, insisted that we should take the program or our operations will be seriously hurt,” said principal of a foundation.

Indonesia’s draft state budget for 2026 (RAPBN 2026) is both ambitious and politically calculated. On paper, it looks disciplined: revenue is targeted at Rp3,147.7 trillion, expenditure at Rp3,786.5 trillion, leaving a deficit of Rp638.8 trillion, or 2.48 percent of GDP—well within the 3 percent fiscal threshold. The government even pledges to reach a balanced budget by 2027–2028. Yet beneath these tidy macroeconomic numbers lies a striking populist agenda—one that risks repeating Indonesia’s old patterns of fiscal politics, while neglecting the country’s digital future.