Politics

Indonesia's Prabowo Government at One Year: Continuity, Not Reform

The free-lunch program launched. The nickel policy stayed. The anti-corruption commission stayed weakened. A ledger.

By Javier Ruiz·July 5, 2026 1 min read Public
Indonesia's Prabowo Government at One Year: Continuity, Not Reform

One Year In

Prabowo Subianto took office promising continuity with Jokowi and something more. The ledger, a year in, tilts firmly toward the first half.

Delivered

- The free nutritious meal program reached roughly 8 million schoolchildren by month twelve. Cost projections have doubled. - Danantara, the sovereign wealth vehicle, absorbed state-enterprise dividends and is now the largest single actor in Indonesian equity markets. - The nickel downstreaming policy, inherited from Jokowi, was accelerated.

Undelivered

- KPK reform. Institutional weakening has continued. - Judicial independence. The most-watched cases went the way the palace preferred. - Fiscal discipline. The 2026 budget breaks the 3% deficit ceiling for the first time in a decade.

The read

Prabowo is governing as a nationalist developmentalist, not a reformer. Markets have accepted this. Civil society has not. The question for year two is whether the two views collide.

Comments & Dispatches

· 0
Sign in to leave a dispatch — anonymously if you prefer.

Loading…