Indonesia’s Prabowo defends record, touts food self-sufficiency in Independence Day speech

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto delivered an Independence Day speech on Friday, acknowledging his government's failure to meet all its promises in a rare show of self-criticism. Despite this, he remained confident about Indonesia's economic prospects, predicting a 6% growth rate for the year and emphasizing the importance of food and energy self-sufficiency for national security.

Analysts noted that while Prabowo's tone had shifted, there was little evidence that his policies were changing. The president, who took office in October 2024, had promised to reduce corruption, boost economic growth, and provide free meals to millions of children. However, his administration has faced challenges such as a weakening currency, a sluggish stock market, and concerns over overspending and central bank independence.

Prabowo defended his plans for greater state oversight of strategic industries, including a controversial proposal to centralize exports of natural resources under a new state-run entity, Danantara Sumberdaya Indonesia (DSI). He reassured investors that the system would monitor and process commodity exports rather than take over the trading process itself.

In his budget speech, Prabowo outlined plans to spend 4,097.2 trillion rupiah (US$229.73 billion) in 2027, a 3.9% increase from the current year's projection. The budget aimed to focus on eight key programs, including food and energy self-sufficiency, development of domestic industries, and education.