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As around half of Indonesia’s population is currently under the age of 30, President Joko Widodo, better known as President Jokowi, has repeatedly stressed the need for the country to overhaul its education system in order to prepare the future workforce to compete in an information-, technology- and creativity-driven global marketplace. While currently on hold due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the construction of a new capital city powered by smart technologies in East Kalimantan will further drive local demand for skilled engineers capable of spearheading the government’s Making Indonesia 4.0 initiative, a vision designed to prepare the country for the increasing automation of industry. This chapter contains interviews with Nadiem Makarim, Minister of Education and Culture; and Tony Fernandes, CEO, AirAsia Group.

This chapter examines the legal system of Indonesia, focusing on regulations to boost investor appeal and enhance the ease of doing business. These include measures for the regulation of e-commerce activities to support ongoing digitalisation, data protection legislation and the proposed omnibus laws. This chapter contains a viewpoint from Teguh Maramis, Senior Partner, Lubis Santosa & Maramis.

The Indonesian government set a tax revenue target of Rp1786trn ($125.9bn) for the year and had successfully collected 86.5% of that figure by the end of December 2019. In 2020 the target was raised to Rp1861.7trn ($131.2bn). This chapter offers an overview of Indonesia’s tax system, including the proposed omnibus laws, international taxation, zero-rated services, tax concessions and the luxury good sales tax, as well as outlines the online single submission system for the electronic processing of tax allowance applications and analyses regulatory efforts to boost the digital ecosystem. This chapter contains a viewpoint from Subianto, Partner and Digital Services Co-Leader, PwC Indonesia.

The health care sector in Indonesia is in the midst of change, with the government making a final push to roll out universal health care (UHC) against the backdrop of the global Covid-19 pandemic. The plan had initially aimed to bring the population of over 268m under coverage by end-2019, but it had yet to achieve the targeted levels of funding and coverage as of early 2020. While the health system is currently tackling multiple burdens, it is limited by comparatively low government spending, rising labour costs and insufficient infrastructure. The move towards UHC is driving demand for private health care, opening new opportunities for collaboration. Going forwards, investment in digital health and technology-based platforms – highlighted during the novel Coronavirus outbreak – must continue to ensure that the health care sector’s reach is vast and sufficient. This should also spur greater focus on personal health across the population. This chapter contains interviews with Terawan Agus Putranto, Minister of Health; and Jonathan Sudharta, Founder, Halodoc

With millions of hectares of arable land across over 17,000 islands, Indonesia’s agriculture sector has long been an integral part of the economy. While its contribution to GDP may have declined in recent years – a result of economic diversification – it remains hugely important, employing roughly one-third of the workforce. Although major companies dominate the industry from a revenue standpoint, small-scale farmers who often operating in hard-to-reach rural areas comprise the backbone of the sector. Infrastructure issues are a hindrance to agricultural growth, but the re-election of President Joko Widodo in 2019 is expected to lead to continued focus on overcoming the issue and contribute to improved nationwide connectivity. In the meantime, technological advancements, often driven by entrepreneurs looking to fill market gaps, are presenting solutions to challenges that Indonesia’s farmers have faced for decades, which include a lack of access to the advanced technologies that could make operations more financially viable. This chapter contains an interview with Kiwi Aliwarga, Founder and Executive Chairman, UMG Idealab.