What Prabowo Subianto has in store for Indonesia’s startups and tech industry

Prabowo Subianto / Photo credit: MuhammadShahab / Shutterstock

Prabowo Subianto looks set to become Indonesia’s next president after securing close to 60% of votes in Wednesday’s elections, according to unofficial quick counts that have historically proven accurate. If officially announced as the winner, he – along with vice presidential candidate Gibran Rakabuming Raka – will be inaugurated on October 20, 2024.

Broadly, the pair aims for continuity with the policies of current president Joko Widodo (Jokowi). But what, specifically, are their plans for startups and the digital economy?

One planned program is a loan scheme for tech and innovation-based businesses. This would follow the Merah Putih Fund launched by the Jokowi administration in September 2023.

According to Subianto’s campaign spokesperson Puteri Anetta Komarudin, the scheme will be similar to applying for a bank loan. However, the capital will come from the government’s budget, not a third party.

“We will definitely be very careful and not arbitrary in distributing the credit,” Komarudin tells Tech in Asia. “That’s why we will analyze each business plan carefully.”

Foreign investment will also be a key focus for the new government. This includes simplifying regulations and providing incentives for foreign investors, such as tax holidays and tax allowances.

The hope is that Indonesian startups would no longer have to establish parent entities in Singapore, which many do to placate foreign investors.

Meanwhile, the Jokowi government’s ban on direct transactions on social media – which led to TikTok Shop’s temporary shutdown – will also continue in the new administration, according to Komarudin.

Finally, electric vehicles will also remain a priority, with Subianto slated to continue Jokowi’s incentives and subsidies.

State-owned Indonesia Battery Corporation is also building an EV battery factory in Karawang, West Java, in collaboration with South Korea’s LG Energy Solution and Hyundai Motor Group. Touted to be the country’s first and largest EV battery factory, the facility is expected to start operating later this year.

Subianto and Raka aim to make Indonesia “the ‘king’ of EV batteries globally” by tapping into the country’s nickel resources, says Komarudin.

See also: At a crossroads: Indonesia’s elections will decide tech future