Officially Announces New Export Rules, Prabowo: Not Strange Policies!

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - President Prabowo Subianto stressed that he is not designing or imposing odd policies. He said this after announcing the issuance of a Government Regulation (Peraturan Pemerintah, PP) on the governance of export of Indonesia’s natural resource commodities (SDA) during his Presidential Address at the 19th Plenary Session of the DPR RI related to KEM and PPKF RAPBN 2027 in the Nusantara Building, MPR/DPR/DPD-RI, Jakarta, on Wednesday, 20 May 2026. The PP, he said, is a government strategy to strengthen the governance of Indonesia’s natural resource export commodities. Under the new PP, all sales of SDA resources, from palm oil, coal, to ferroalloys, must pass through a state-owned enterprise designated by the Indonesian government. “The main objective of this policy is to strengthen oversight and monitoring, as well as to root out under invoicing practices, transfer pricing, and the flight of foreign exchange earnings from exports (DHE),” he said. “This policy will optimise tax and state revenue from processing our natural resources. It could be like Mexico, the Philippines, and like our neighbouring countries. We do not want our revenue to be the lowest because we are not brave enough to manage our own assets, the assets of the Indonesian nation,” he asserted. Prabowo said that every citizen, every leader who possesses intelligence, loves the homeland, and has a conscience, would not allow Indonesia’s natural wealth to be managed without oversight or control. “It’s been too long, dear colleagues,” he added. He noted that similar policies have been implemented by many other countries that truly master their natural wealth. “We must look at and learn from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Morocco, Ghana, Russia, and even from our neighbours Malaysia and Vietnam,” he said. “We must not be naive or blind to reason. We must learn from such countries,” he added. Those countries, he continued, have been able to manage the wealth of natural resources for the benefit of their people. They have been able to run world-class education, healthcare, infrastructure, and sovereign wealth funds (SWF) of a global standard. Indonesia, Prabowo emphasised, should not be shy about learning from countries that have long been able to capitalise on natural resources for the greatest possible benefit to their people. “Therefore I emphasise that the policies being pursued by the Indonesian Government today are not odd. Not an extraordinary policy,” he said. “This is a practice that many countries have adopted. It is common sense. Our natural resources belong to us; we must decide where to sell them and at what price is fair. We will not accept unfair treatment of our nation any longer. Indonesia stands on its own feet,” he asserted. (dce/dce) Add as a preferred source on Google [Video CNBC]