InfoSAWIT, JAKARTA – Indonesia’s plan to tighten governance of natural resource (SDA) exports, recently announced by President Prabowo Subianto, has sparked mixed reactions among businesses and the wider public, particularly within the palm oil industry.
While several industry players have expressed concern over the proposed framework, former State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN) Ministry official and public policy observer Said Didu has openly backed the policy, describing it as a necessary step toward improving state control over strategic commodity exports.
In a statement shared through his social media account on X, Said encouraged public support for government efforts to establish a more integrated export governance system for Indonesia’s natural resources.
“Let us support government regulations to manage natural resource product exports,” Said wrote in a post cited by InfoSAWIT on Sunday (24/5/2026).
According to Said, opposition to the policy may come from parties that have long benefited from loopholes in the country’s export trading system. He argued that tighter governance is intended to eliminate practices that have allegedly caused significant state revenue leakages.
Said identified five major practices he believes have undermined state revenues: underinvoicing, transfer pricing, smuggling, manipulation of export commodity classification or HS Codes, and financial engineering.
“These five forms of looting have cost the state thousands of trillions of rupiah,” Said stated.
He further argued that companies operating transparently and in compliance with regulations should have little reason to fear the new policy.
According to Said, strategic commodities such as crude palm oil (CPO), coal, ferro alloy, nickel, tin, and gold are traded using internationally recognized benchmark prices that can be monitored openly.
Because of this transparency, Said suggested that declines in share prices among certain companies following discussion of the proposed policy may indicate anxiety among particular market participants.
“Honest companies will not be affected by this policy because the commodities involved are priced through international auction references that can be monitored at any time,” he added.
The proposed strengthening of natural resource export governance, including the involvement of a state investment management institution, has attracted broad attention across multiple industries, including the palm oil sector.
Industry players have emphasized that while stronger governance may improve oversight, implementation must be accompanied by regulatory clarity and transparent mechanisms to avoid disrupting Indonesia’s export trade flows. (T2)
