Indonesia: 2014 and Beyond

Our distinguished speaker, Dr. Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-Jakti, will speak on the role Indonesia’s geography, demography, history, and political economy have played, and are likely to play, in determining Indonesia’s nature and outlook beyond 2014.

He will trace the role of natural resources, including minerals, mining, oil and gas, and agricultural commodities in Indonesia’s development; and the nature of Indonesia’s competitive position, including the size of its domestic market, its youthful demographics, and its labor costs compared with its competitors. He will show how if Indonesia is to exploit its competitive potential, it must produce more high skilled workers and jobs through the education of its youth between now and 2020.

Indonesia has searched for a political-economic system that can effectively integrate and accommodate the diversity of the nation, giving power both to the center and to regions, and allowing for popular participation.  Dr. Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-Jakti will give an overview of Indonesia’s phases of political development, from its revolutionary origins, through the New Order, Reformasi, the “Indonesian  Spring” of 1998-2004, to the present, and culminating with his views on the key internal drivers of change for 2014 and beyond.