Robinson highlights Indonesia’s institutional challenges beyond growth target
The 2024 economics Nobel laureate raised concerns about corruption, tax collection and state administration at an October 12 discussion.
Indonesia needs to address challenges in its political institutions and state capacity alongside its 8% economic growth target, 2024 economics Nobel laureate James A. Robinson said. He spoke on October 12, 2026, at a discussion organised by the National Economic Council (DEN) and Prasasti Center for Policy Studies.
Robinson described Indonesia’s transition towards democracy and more inclusive politics as unfinished. He identified the distribution of power and the state’s ability to carry out its functions as two areas where the country still faces difficulties.
Citing Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index, he said Indonesia was roughly level with the Philippines and well behind Singapore, whose score was around 80. Higher scores indicate better conditions, he noted. He also cited the World Bank’s World Enterprise Survey on businesses’ experience of paying bribes, saying Indonesia performed substantially worse than the Philippines.
On tax receipts relative to gross domestic product, Robinson said Indonesia was not markedly different from the Philippines but was far below South Korea and China. He also assessed Indonesia’s administrative effectiveness as weaker than that of South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore, and pointed to a decline in the data over the past decade whose causes he could not fully explain.
