(Reuters) – Three candidates are running in Indonesia’s presidential election on Feb. 14. The following is a summary of policy objectives they have pledged while campaigning.
ANIES BASWEDAN
– Target 5.5%-6.5% average annual economic growth from 2025-2029
– Create 15 million jobs, including ‘green’ jobs
– Raise the tax-to-GDP ratio from 10.4% in 2022 to 13%-16% by 2029
– Target annual inflation of 2%-3% from 2025-2029
– Offer incentives for renewable energy projects
– Impose a carbon tax with proceeds to be used as an endowment fund to finance development of renewable energy
– Increase the ‘village fund’ to 5 billion rupiah ($317,965) for each village, from the current 1 billion rupiah.
– Widen access to global markets for palm oil farmers
– Strengthen free trade agreements and Indonesia’s role in international financial institutions
– Minimise imports of staple foods
– Create 2 million new affordable housing units, including for informal workers, youth
– Expedite forest conservation and rehabilitation projects
– Limit new construction of, and retire existing coal-fired power plants, especially in Java, Bali islands
– Review debt of state-owned enterprises, continue debt restructuring programme
– Revise Jobs Creation Law with goal to ensure fair wages for workers
– Evaluate the $32 billion new capital city project
– Evaluate food estate programme, replacing it with contract farming, a scheme to ensure farm products will be sold
– Impose a wealth tax on Indonesia’s 100 richest people
– Audit the nickel industry with focus on its impact on the environment and ensuring welfare of domestic workers
– Strengthen the anti-corruption agency by revising the law that regulates it
– Ease permitting requirements for building places of worship
GANJAR PRANOWO
– Continue programmes of outgoing President Joko Widodo’s administration
– Target average annual economic growth of 7%
– Create 17 million new jobs
– Expedite construction of new capital city
– Increase the defence budget as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) to between 1%-2%, from about 0.8% presently. Modernise military hardware
– Target 30% share for renewable sources in energy mix by 2029
– Allow more renewable energy producers to use electricity grids of state utility firms to boost green energy adoption
– Set up a dedicated ministry for the palm oil sector
– Maintain moratorium on deforestation, accelerate reforestation programmes
– Create digital tax collection system under the new tax agency separated from finance ministry
– Limit permit issuance of new nickel smelter to avoid a further oversupply
– Expand social welfare to cover 15 million families, up from 10 million currently
– Provide funding to ensure at least one member of a poor family receives education until college
– Strengthen national anti-corruption agency
– Maintain foreign policy of non-alignment
– Strengthen Indonesia’s commitment to support fight of Palestinian people
– Revitalise the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and its decision-making process, especially regarding South China Sea disputes.
PRABOWO SUBIANTO
– Continue President Joko Widodo’s programme to build new capital city
– Develop resource downstreaming including in maritime sector
– Create 19 million new jobs
– Establish state revenue agency, increase state revenue-to-GDP ratio to 23%
– Raise threshold for non-taxable income, lower individual income tax rate
– Provide loans for digital start-ups
– Fully eradicate extreme poverty within two years of taking office
– Provide free lunch and milk for students from elementary until high school, at an annual cost of 450 trillion rupiah or equal to about $29 billion
– Achieve food, energy, water self-sufficiency
– Implement smart farming to boost output and increase participation of young farmers
– Retire coal power plants, accelerate decarbonisation
– Gradually increase defence budget, modernise military hardware
– Seek a significant raising of the palm oil component in the biodiesel mix, more bioethanol in fuel by 2029, and push for usage of bioavtur, a sustainable aviation fuel
– Set up a palm oil body with authority to harmonise rules by various ministries that oversee the sector
– Establish task force to look at restricting foreign workers
– Limit permit issuance of new nickel smelter to avoid a further oversupply
– Audit mining industry, including the nickel sector, with focus on the workers’ living conditions
– Maintain Indonesia’s non-aligned foreign policy
($1 = 15,725.0000 rupiah)
(Compiled by Stanley Widianto, Ananda Teresia, Stefanno Sulaiman and Bernadette Christina Munthe; Editing by Martin Petty)
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