Since his recent appointment as the Naritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister, Sakti Wahyu Trenggono has already annulled three regulations on lobster larvae export and the use of trawl issued by his predecessor, Edhy Prabowo, who was arrested in the lobster larvae export graft case. The former deputy minister of defense with extensive experience in telecommunication is in the process of issuing regulations to ban the export of lobster larvae and the use of cantrang or trawl to prevent overfishing and ecological destruction. Given the task by the President to improve the welfare of fishermen, Trenggono is trying to steer the farmers toward fish farming which he believes will bring prosperity to the country’s small-scale fishers. He also vowed not to repeat the mistakes of his predecessor.

Muhammad Lutfi immediately stepped on the gas right after he was sworn in as trade minister on December 23, 2020. The former envoy to the United States must focus on three main duties mandated to him by President Joko Widodo: to maintain price stability; to help MSMEs penetrate the export market; and, to expand the export market to non-traditional territories by making use of the international economic cooperation agreements Indonesia has signed. According to him, China and the United States are extremely important to Indonesia.

Garuda Indonesia CEO Irfan Setiaputra inherited a plethora of problems when he joined the national flag carrier last year. Now, if he is not exploring maneuvers to turn the financially-distressed company around amid dwindling number of passengers or taking care of the thorny plane rental contract, Irfan shepherds Garuda as a pivotal airline in distributing Covid-19 vaccines. Armed with extensive experience in leading various companies, Irfan Setiaputra pulls out all the stops to restore Garuda Indonesia’s image as a bona fide airline.

The traditional arts sector has been one of the most battered industry by the pandemic adversely affecting those who depend on stage performances for their livelihoods. Many traditional artists in rural areas have no choice but to turn into farmers, traders or online taxi drivers as they cannot rely only on government assistance to sustain themselves.

In the midst of a flurry of activities to procure and distribute Covid-19 vaccines, State-Owned Enterprises Minister Erick Thohir has additional responsibility of overseeing the establishment of a sovereign wealth fund (SWF) and the selection of the fund’s board members. The government is confident that the fund will help restore the national economy.