What policies to expect from Indonesia's new president

JAKARTA, Indonesia — 

Retired General Prabowo Subianto volition beryllium sworn successful Sunday arsenic the president of Indonesia, the world's third-biggest ideology with the largest system successful Southeast Asia.

The pursuing is simply a summary of Prabowo's argumentation pledges:

Boosting growth

Prabowo has acceptable a people to accelerate economical maturation to 8%, from 5% now, by processing industries that process Indonesia's affluent earthy resources and relying connected the economical interaction of his flagship programs, specified arsenic giving students escaped schoolhouse meals.

Prabowo volition beryllium unfastened to overseas investment, his adjutant has said, specified arsenic by offering investors absorption of airports and seaports.

Prabowo, presently defence minister, besides plans to rise funds by selling c credits overseas to money greenish projects that volition make jobs, an advisor told Reuters.

Energy and nutrient security

Central successful Prabowo's run pledge was to marque Indonesia self-sufficient successful accumulation of staples, arsenic good arsenic to chopped the country's reliance of substance imports.

In his existent relation arsenic defence minister, helium oversaw the "Food Estate" project, clearing swamps to marque mode for cassava planting.

This task volition beryllium expanded, creating 3 cardinal hectares to cultivate rice, maize and soybeans. That is astir the size of Belgium.

Some of the agriculture products volition beryllium made into bioethanol.

Prabowo has besides made preparations to summation the mandatory blending of thenar oil-based biodiesel to 50% by adjacent year, up from presently 35%, to trim gasoil imports. Indonesia is the world's biggest shaper of thenar oil.

Free, nutritious schoolhouse meals

Prabowo's astir well-known run committedness is the $28 cardinal "Free Nutritious Meals" programme providing nutrient for 83 cardinal children and large women to combat stunted kid growth.

Considered by immoderate economists arsenic costly, the programme has sparked concerns from standing agencies and investors that the caller authorities would determination distant from the prudent fiscal absorption seen nether his predecessor.

Prabowo and his aides person pledged to negociate the government's fund responsibly, defending the programme arsenic indispensable for semipermanent quality development. The programme would beryllium rolled retired successful stages starting from January 2025.

Tax policy

Prabowo has acceptable a people to summation authorities revenue-to-GDP ratio to 23% from astir 12%, promising to bash truthful utilizing improved exertion and without raising taxation rates.

During campaigning, helium said helium was considering mounting up a caller taxation postulation bureau modeled connected the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, but it was unclear if this would beryllium pursued.

The erstwhile peculiar forces commandant would reappraisal the anticipation of lowering firm income taxation to 20% from 22%, according to media reports citing his adviser, though this would beryllium connected its interaction connected revenues.

It besides remains to beryllium seen whether Prabowo would rise the value-added taxation (VAT) complaint to 12% from 11% connected January 1, 2025, an unpopular program that has been acceptable successful question by the existent administration.

Future of caller superior city

Outgoing person Widodo has made the $32 cardinal task to determination Indonesia's superior 1,200 kilometers distant from sinking Jakarta to Nusantara, connected Borneo island, his main bequest project.

Prabowo has publically said helium would proceed gathering the city, adjacent arsenic helium acknowledged the task mightiness instrumentality years to complete.

However, members of Prabowo's conjugation person privately raised doubts astir the capableness of the authorities fund to money some the caller superior and the nutrition program, sources told Reuters.

Foreign policy

Prabowo has said his presidency volition proceed Jakarta's long-held overseas argumentation of non-alignment, promising to support bully ties with satellite powers without choosing sides.

In a motion helium volition beryllium much progressive connected the planetary stage, Prabowo has traveled extensively since winning the election, gathering leaders from countries similar Australia, China, France, Japan, Russia and neighboring nations successful Southeast Asia.

Last year, astatine a gathering of information officials from galore countries, Prabowo arsenic Indonesia's defence curate projected a bid program to extremity the warfare successful Ukraine.

Months later, helium took swipe astatine the European Union's deforestation rules, saying Europeans forced Indonesians to chopped down forests erstwhile Indonesia was a Dutch colony, successful a seminar explaining his overseas argumentation stance.