JAKARTA – Prabowo Subianto took the oath of office on Sunday before the Indonesian parliament, becoming the country’s eighth president.
The former defence minister, aged 73, garnered 96 million votes, while his closest rival, Anies Baswedan, received 41 million votes in the elections held on February 14th, 2024.
Subianto has outlined several ambitious plans, notably a proposal to provide free meals to students, costing an estimated 28 billion dollars.
While Indonesia has maintained a steady annual growth rate of about 5 percent, the former general has pledged to build on his predecessor’s policies and drive growth to 8 percent, leveraging the country’s vast human resources.
In his victory speech in March, Subianto said, “Through prosperity, we can achieve justice for all Indonesians. We must unite to eliminate poverty, hunger, and the suffering of our people.”
To realise this vision, Subianto is counting on large-scale infrastructure projects and the archipelago’s abundant natural resources to reduce the country’s poverty rate, which currently exceeds 9 percent.
