2020 was the year no one could have imagined or predicted in 2019. The COVID-19 has indeed disrupted, influenced and even altered many aspects of human lives. Nevertheless we belive 2021 is going to be a better year. What can we learn from 2020? How should Indonesia prepare for in 2021?
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Following the contraction at -5.32% in the second and -3.49% in the third quarter of 2020, Indonesia’s economy has fallen into recession. Nevertheless, World Bank and IMF came with positive news as they predicted Indonesian economy to expand between 4.8% – 6.1% next year. The arrival of vaccine in Indonesia also increases public confidence that Indonesia’s economy will soon recover. However, economic rebound still depends on various factors, including politics. What would Indonesian economic and political landscape looks like next year? When will our economic activities return to normalcy? What kind of policy breakthroughs are needed to spur reforms and transformations for a resilient recovery?
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Pandemi Covid-19 telah mengubah perspektif pemerintah maupun pelaku industri dalam berbagai aspek, terutama dalam menjamin ketahanan kesehatan publik, pembangunan ekonomi, dan stabilitas politik. Di bidang ekonomi, setidaknya ada dua implikasi yang harus dicermati dalam mengantisipasi perubahan akibat dampak pandemi. Pertama, pandemi ini telah mendorong evaluasi terhadap global supply chain yang selama ini terpusat di beberapa negara tertentu.
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As if COVID-19 and the economic recession were not enough, the world today has to bear with a wrangle between France and the Islamic world, sparked by controversy over President Emmanuel Macron’s recent statements about Islam. Macron made his comments after the gruesome beheading of French teacher Samuel Paty, who had shown a cartoon of Prophet Muhammad to his students as part of a class discussion.
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COVID-19 has reinforced the strategic role of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in navigating regional resilience in a time of crisis. The pandemic demonstrated the use of technology in practice to keep business, governments, and societies running. However, every country has a different capacity in utilizing ICT to respond to COVID-19. How does ASEAN address this ‘digital gap’? How does the Master Plan of ASEAN Connectivity 2025 help in strengthening digital connectivity in the region? How has COVID-19 shifted the digital landscape in Southeast Asia thus far? What are the key challenges in transforming towards a more digitized community?
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After almost a decade in the making, the world’s largest free-trade bloc has finally been finalized in the direst of times. As the world faces an economic recession, RCEP delivers new hopes for its signatories to rebuild better, and most importantly, bounce back stronger in overcoming the threats posed by the pandemic. Bringing together major players of Southeast Asia, Asia Pacific, and Oceania, the signing of this historic pact indicates that countries are searching for hope in surviving the pandemic through multilateralism.
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