Journal of Economic Epistemology and Philosophy
Vol. 1 No. 1 (2026): March 2026

Economic philosophy in Indonesia's new Prabowo government: Pancasila economics, developmentalism, and neoliberal residues

Safri Adriansyah (Faculty of Economics and Business, Brawijaya University)



Article Info

Publish Date
03 Mar 2026

Abstract

Indonesia's Prabowo Subianto administration has begun with an explicit claim that economic policy should be anchored in Pancasila, sovereignty, and an activist state role. This opinion article examines the economic philosophy implied by the early agenda and evaluates whether it represents neoliberal continuity, developmental statism, or a hybrid alternative. Using an Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion (IMRAD) structure, this article applies a critical conceptual review and document analysis to official policy texts, macroeconomic data, and peer-reviewed literature on neoliberalism, Pancasila economics, Indonesian developmentalism, oligarchy, and social investment. The findings indicate that the administration's philosophy is not a purely neoliberal project. Its central elements are state managerial authority, human capital welfare, economic sovereignty through resource downstreaming, and strategic asset mobilization through Danantara. However, neoliberal residues remain visible in investment discipline, global capital, performance metrics, asset optimization, and market-compatible instruments. Therefore, this article characterizes the new policy orientation as Pancasila developmentalism with neoliberal instruments. Its legitimacy depends on transparent fiscal rules, independent evaluation of the free nutritious meal program, strong governance of Danantara, conflict-of-interest safeguards, local participation, and ecological accountability. This article contributes a philosophical framework for assessing Indonesia's new economic direction and proposes criteria for judging its scholarly and policy credibility.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

JEEP

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Description

Journal of Economic Epistemology and Philosophy (JEEP) is an international scholarly journal dedicated to publishing high-quality academic works that examine the philosophical, epistemological, ethical, historical, and theoretical foundations of economics and economic thought. The journal aims to ...