Women’s reps: A group of people takes part in a rally supporting women's rights and gender equality in Jakarta to mark International Women's Day on March 8, 2024.

No turning back: A pivotal moment for women and girls in Asia-Pacific

Closing gender gaps in employment would boost gross domestic product (GDP) by up to 20 percent globally.

2 months ago

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Beyond Sritex bankruptcy: The deeper troubles of our textile sector

The sector has been grappling with a mix of internal and external challenges, including regulatory hurdles. ...

2 months ago

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Making a better case for foreign aid

Advocates of official development assistance rightly argue that it saves lives and serves national interests. But that does not change the fact that the system has been hemorrhaging credibility and resources for years and lacks a convincing narrative. ...

2 months ago

The Latest

Police officers from Operation Cartenz Peace patrol in Bintang Highlands regency, Papua Highlands, on Sept. 21, 2023. The operation aims to quell the Free Papua Movement (OPM).

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Human security approach to Papua: Hopes for new government

Poverty rates among Papuans remain high, with inadequate access to education, healthcare and employment opportunities even after 20 years of special autonomy.

2 months ago

Members of the European council pose for a family photo on Dec. 19, 2024, following a meeting at the European Union headquarters in Brussels.

Academia

What China can teach Europe about geopolitical independence

The transatlantic alliance appears to be coming apart at the seams, meaning Europe will need to quickly develop a strategy for harnessing geopolitical hard power.

2 months ago

Myanmar security forces escort people released from scam centers on Feb. 12, 2025, as they board a river ferry in Kyauk Khet, Myawaddy, to cross the border into Thailand.

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Indonesia-Thailand ties: 75 years of friendship, building a dynamic partnership

Building upon our shared cultural heritage and historical ties that date back to kingdoms of old, Indonesia and Thailand look forward to a dynamic partnership committed to peace, security and prosperity for our peoples and the region as a whole.

2 months ago

High-risk occupation: A technician from state electricity company PT PLN stands atop a transmission tower during regular maintenance work on Dec. 27, 2023, in Palu, Central Sulawesi.

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A look at monopoly rights in the new SOEs Law

The granting of rights to a monopoly seems to be increasingly generalized or facilitated.

2 months ago

United States President Donald Trump and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky meet in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on Feb. 28, 2025.

Academia

America is gone, Europe must replace it

Yes, Europe is not as powerful as the US militarily; but that does not mean it is weak. In fact, it holds all the cards that it needs.

2 months ago

Palembang Ilir Barat Tax Office employees serve taxpayers submitting their annual tax returns on Feb. 29, 2024.

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From innovation to frustration: Coretax vs. Australia’s tax system

When the tax system falters, it does not merely inconvenience taxpayers, but it also risks undermining public trust in government institutions and stalls broader reform efforts.

2 months ago

A vessel from the Taiwan Coast Guard (front) monitors a China Coast Guard ship on Dec. 12, 2024, while patrolling waters a few nautical miles from Taiwan's northeastern coast.

Academia

ASEAN coalition of willing matters as regional tensions rise

As Trump is pushing the EU to finally get serious about a common defense, a Taiwan crisis will force ASEAN to rise as a geopolitical power.

2 months ago

Activists take part in the Global Climate Strike in Jakarta on Sept. 27, 2024.

Academia

Lack of justice in Indonesia’s climate plan may backfire

Indonesia’s climate documents have failed to adequately address the social and environmental aspects that are fundamental to a just transition.

2 months ago

Indonesia’s largest defense partners by quantity of projects 2015-2024

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Will Turkey and Indonesia’s defense industry cooperation thrive?

Turkey is not Indonesia’s largest defense industry partner by quantity. But the DCA, if materializes, will serve as a strong foundation for further partnership.

2 months ago

Enabling elites: Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk with his son X Æ A-Xii join United States President Donald Trump as he signs executive orders on Feb. 11 in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC.

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The coming showdown in Trumpworld

With Trump’s elite supporters prioritizing their own narrow agendas over democratic principles, the risk of a slide toward authoritarianism should be obvious.

2 months ago

Attendants of a gas station owned by state-owned energy holding company Pertamina serve customers in Semarang, Central Java, on Feb. 27, 2025.

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From loopholes to accountability: Ensuring fuel quality

The history of fuel governance in Indonesia indicates that transparency and accountability challenges are not new; rather, they are recurring issues.

2 months ago

Members of the Bayi Aerobatic Team, composed of air force pilots from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), perform on Nov. 15, 2024, during the 15th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai, Guangdong province.

Academia

China’s flyers flout aviation rules with flares, flybys

Chinese military pilots are showing increasingly aggressive behavior in the skies, akin to that of military vessels on the seas, ramping up the growing threat they pose in both domains.

2 months ago

Watchdog: The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) building is pictured on Jan. 22 under overcast skies in Jakarta.

Academia

Indonesia at its richest: Strengthening governance for sustainable growth

Danantara holds promise, but unless Indonesia addresses structural weaknesses, the fund risks becoming another state-controlled financial instrument subject to political cycles.

2 months ago

Highly contentious meeting: United States President Donald Trump meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Feb. 28 at the White House in Washington, DC.

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Trump and the ghosts of colonialism: A lesson for Indonesia

What Trump has done to Zelenskyy bears similarity to colonial economic arrangements, in which a weaker nation must grant the powerful access to its natural wealth in exchange for protection.

2 months ago

A security guard walks near the building housing the sovereign wealth fund known as Daya Anagata Nusantara, or Danantara, on Feb. 24 in Jakarta.

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How Danantara would change Indonesian fiscal landscape

There have been worries about the independence, integrity and credibility of Danantara. There is also skepticism about Danantara’s ability to operate independently of political influences.

2 months ago

United States President Donald Trump speaks to reporters in the Oval Office of the White House on Feb. 3, 2025 in Washington, DC.

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Donald Trump’s self-fulfilling crisis

Donald Trump’s bleak diagnosis of the US economy is not grounded in reality – at least not yet.

2 months ago

Evolving financial landscape: A man opens a digital bank app on July 4, 2024, in Jakarta.

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Reshaping Indonesia’s financial conglomerates: A new playbook for titans

For financial conglomerates, the challenge is no longer about compliance, it’s about transformation.

2 months ago

Visitors walk past an Amazon exhibition booth during the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) in Shanghai, China, on July 5, 2024.

Academia

Protecting children in the age of artificial intelligence

In essence, there can be no substitute for an educated and literate public with a discerning and critically analytical mind, as well as to have cognitive and affective means to protect itself from transgressions.

2 months ago

Then-defense Minister and president-elect Prabowo Subianto (right) and Australia's Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles shake hands after signing the Australia-Indonesia Defence Cooperation Agreement (DCA) at the Military Academy in Magelang, Central Java, on Aug. 29, 2024. The pact, which includes provisions for joint drills and deployments to each country, was signed during Marles' visit to Indonesia this week.

Academia

Business, investor cooperation key for Indonesia-Australia relationship

The fragmentation of trading markets provides likemined, pro-growth nations like Australia and Indonesia with the opportunity to turn toward each other.

2 months ago

Screens are seen at the InaTEWS earthquake and tsunami monitoring room at the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) headquarters in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta, on Sept. 30, 2024. The BMKG ensures that the agency issues a disaster warning within three minutes of the first detection.

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AI in public sector: A call for digital transformation

AI-powered systems can streamline tax collection, optimize budget allocation and detect fraud in public procurement, thereby increasing transparency and accountability.

2 months ago

Jakarta Governor Pramono Anung (left) and Deputy Governor Rano Karno (right) prepare to take part in a parade at the Monas Cross Square in Jakarta on Feb. 20, 2025.

Academia

Perennial problems await Pramono

Jakarta’s new leaders must acknowledge the urgent need to make the city more livable. This requires balancing infrastructure and social development, economic growth and environmental protection.

2 months ago

President Prabowo Subianto (center) ceremonially deposits a gold bar on Feb. 26, 2025, during the inauguration in Jakarta of the country’s first bullion bank services, operated by state-owned pawnbroker Pegadaian and state-owned Bank Syariah Indonesia.

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Is bullion banking Indonesia’s golden opportunity?

The recent launch of Indonesia's first bullion bank, within the framework of a 2023 financial development law and an OJK regulation, marks a significant step forward in the country's potential entry to the global gold market, as well as greater wealth and economic self-sufficiency.

2 months ago

Elon Musk (left) gestures while speaking to reporters on Feb. 11, 2025, as his son X and United States President Donald Trump look on in the Oval Office at the White House.

Academia

Austerity is back, and more dangerous than ever

Comparing the austerity experiments of Europe, Argentina and the US to the present day as a necessary hardship traces its evolutionary path from a misguided "cure" for ailing economies to a political weapon; neither is a good idea.

2 months ago

President Prabowo Subianto (center, back turned) shakes hands with his predecessor Joko “Jokowi“ Widodo on Feb. 24, 2025, during the launch of the Daya Anagata Nusantara (Danantara) sovereign wealth fund in Jakarta.

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Danantara should fulfill the Santiago Principles to attract investors

Adopting at least four of the Santiago Principles, described as "the globally accepted standards for governance, investment and risk management practices for sovereign wealth funds" by the SWF international forum, will help ensure the independence, transparency and attractiveness of the nascent Danantara fund.

2 months ago

This file picture taken on Sept. 5, 2018, shows flags from the Pacific Islands countries being displayed in Yaren on the last day of the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF).

Academia

Pacific transactionalism: Art of the diplomatic deal

The Cook Islands' recent deals with China represents a shift from soft- to hard-edged diplomacy in the Pacific.

2 months ago

Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (right) greets United States President Donald Trump during their meeting on June 29 on the sidelines of the 2019 Group of 20 Osaka Summit in Japan, in this handout photo provided by Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh.

Academia

Saudi Arabia’s rise signals decline of Europe’s geopolitical centrality

Riyadh has been emerging as a neutral ground for mediating geopolitical issues in recent years and Trump’s return to the White House has opened other opportunities as a player in global diplomacy, though its broader strategy is still firmly rooted in the Gulf, with a foothold in the Global South.

2 months ago