JakartaPost-Oct 26, 2023
In a bid to prevent unpleasant surprises, business groups have proposed road maps to be adopted by all presidential candidates participating in next year’s general election. Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) chairwoman Shinta Kamdani claimed that all three candidate pairs pursued the same goal of elevating the country to the status of a developed economy by 2045. “Whoever wins, that is [going to be] the direction,” Shinta told reporters on Tuesday at the 11th US-Indonesia Investment Summit in Jakarta, expressing confidence that any of the three presidential candidates would continue down the road paved by President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo. Indonesia often draws flak for what investors see as a lack of regulatory consistency as policies frequently change when a new administration takes the reins in Jakarta. Businesses typically favor continuity in the legal framework to ensure that their operations continue smoothly throughout political transitions. What businesses needed to focus on, Shinta said, was how much of an overhaul would take place, since some policy changes were inevitable. Keen to ensure a degree of predictability, Apindo has devised its road map to serve as reference for the candidates to figure out what businesses believe furthers the country’s continued economic development. Similarly, the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) said it, too, had created a road map that the candidates would use as a reference to ensure continuity in the transition from the current to the future administration. Read more at: https://www.thejakartapost.com/business/2023/10/26/businesses-seek-to-ensure-post-election-continuity.html.