Summary of Candidates’ Policy Objectives for Indonesia’s Presidential Election
The upcoming presidential election in Indonesia on February 14 features three candidates—Anies Baswedan, Ganjar Pranowo, and Prabowo Subianto—each offering distinct policy proposals aimed at addressing the country’s economic, social, and environmental challenges.
Anies Baswedan
Anies focuses on sustainable economic growth and environmental policies. His key objectives include:
- Economic Growth: Target an average annual growth rate of 5.5%-6.5% from 2025 to 2029 and create 15 million jobs, emphasizing green employment.
- Taxation: Increase the tax-to-GDP ratio from 10.4% to 13%-16% by 2029.
- Inflation Control: Aim for a 2%-3% annual inflation rate.
- Green Energy Incentives: Promote renewable energy projects and impose a carbon tax to fund further development in the sector.
- Agricultural Support: Enhance global market access for palm oil farmers and minimize imports of staple foods.
- Housing and Social Programs: Construct 2 million affordable housing units and elevate the ‘village fund’ to 5 billion rupiah per village.
- Transparency and Fair Wages: Strengthen the anti-corruption agency and revise existing laws to ensure fair wages.
Ganjar Pranowo
Ganjar’s campaign builds on the foundation laid by President Joko Widodo while pushing for greater advancements:
- Growth and Employment: Seek an ambitious 7% average annual growth and create 17 million jobs.
- Capital Development: Expedite the construction of a new capital city and modernize military capabilities by increasing the defense budget.
- Sustainable Energy Goals: Achieve a 30% share for renewable sources in the energy mix by 2029.
- Social Welfare Expansion: Extend social benefits to cover 15 million families and ensure educational support for the youth.
- Anti-Corruption: Continue strengthening the national anti-corruption agency while maintaining a non-aligned foreign policy.
Prabowo Subianto
Prabowo embraces a vision of resource development and poverty eradication, with specific targets:
- Job Creation: Pledge to create 19 million new jobs and fully eradicate extreme poverty within two years.
- Revenue Enhancement: Establish a new state revenue agency and boost revenue-to-GDP ratios to 23%.
- Education and Nutrition: Provide free lunches and milk for schoolchildren, costing approximately $29 billion annually.
- Self-Sufficiency: Focus on achieving food, energy, and water self-sufficiency and implement smart farming techniques.
- Environmental Commitments: Accelerate decarbonization efforts by retiring coal plants and auditing the nickel sector for worker welfare.
- Non-Aligned Foreign Policy: Maintain an independent foreign policy stance similar to his predecessors.
Each candidate presents a unique approach to governance, targeting economic stability, environmental sustainability, and social welfare, underscoring the complexity and significance of this electoral decision for Indonesia’s future.
