Prabowo Appoints Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan as Chairman of National Economic Council

SEAToday.com, Jakarta - President Prabowo Subianto appointed former Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan as Chairman of the National Economic Council, Monday (10/21). Luhut will serve as an advisor to the president in the economic field in accelerating crisis mitigation and national economic recovery.

The appointment is contained in Presidential Decree Number 139/P of 2024 on the appointment of the Chairman of the National Economic Council.

Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan said his role in leading the National Economic Council is to help the government digitize the national economic system to make it more efficient.

This was conveyed by Luhut at the Presidential Palace complex in Jakarta, after being inaugurated as Chairman of the National Economic Council of the Red and White Cabinet for the 2024-2029 period by President Prabowo Subianto at the Merdeka Palace, Jakarta, Monday.

“President Prabowo asked me to help make our governance better, because governance with digitalization I think can make us more efficient,” he said.

Luhut hopes that the presence of the National Economic Council in the composition of the current government cabinet can support the Mineral and Coal Information System (Simbara) of Ministries/Institutions.

Digitalization of the national economic system is part of Prabowo Subianto-Gibran Rakabuming Raka's quick win program as President and Vice President of Indonesia.

The National Economic Council targets the realization of the improvement of the economic digitalization system within the next 1 to 2 years.

Previously, in President Joko Widodo's administration, Luhut was noted to have supported a number of strategic ministerial positions and agency heads. This was marked in 2016-2019 as the Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs, then in the 2019-2024 period as the Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment.