I. t was political theater on Dec. 24 when PresidentPrabowo Subianto delivered a speech flanked by walls of 100,000-rupiah notes worth Rp 6.6 trillion (US$394.1 million) ...Social media answered with laughter, sarcasm and anger ... .
R. eliable data is the oxygen of modern policymaking. Without it, governments lose direction, markets lose confidence and citizens lose trust. Yet we often forget that data is not a neutral artifact. It is the product of institutions ... .
A. s we bid farewell to 2025, we note that the year concluded with a series of sting operations by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), targeting at least six regional heads. Yet, the news no longer shocks the public ... .
F. ew industries have been tested as frequently and relentlessly as hospitality over the past decade ... And yet it rebounded, in some cases stronger than before. Ten years ago, Southeast Asia's hospitality sector was fragmented ... resilience ... .
W. hile the ocean’s health is perilously close to a tipping point, 2025 offered reasons for hope ... If we fail to seize this chance, the consequences will be dire for generations to come ... .
T. he recent flooding that affected three provinces in northern Sumatra exposed how weak land use policies, particularly those related to mining and palm oil activities, magnified the scale and severity of the disaster ... .
T. his week marks Myanmar’s first so-called “general election” since the 2021 military coup, an exercise staged under the shadow of civil war, mass displacement and pervasive repression ... In reality, it is the opposite ... .
T. he free nutritious meal (MBG) program marks a significant step in aligning national development priorities with the everyday realities faced by millions of families in Indonesia... The SKI data reveal emerging nutritional vulnerabilities ... .
E. ach year, the world, and Indonesia, faces humanitarian crises that seem endless. Disasters, poverty, inequality, food insecurity, stunting, climate shocks and social vulnerabilities appear in different forms but with familiar consequences ... .
T ... The greatest beneficiary of this indirect system is the President, at least going by the history of how Soeharto had ruled Indonesia for over three decades ... The coalition controls over 80 percent of the seats in the House of Representatives ... .