Indonesia

Facts

  • Full name: Republic of Indonesia
  • Population: 230 million (UN, 2009)
  • Capital: Jakarta
  • Area: 1.9 million sq km (742,308 sq miles)
  • Major languages: Indonesian, 300 regional languages
  • Major religion: Islam
  • Life expectancy: 69 years (men), 73 years (women) (UN)
  • Monetary unit: 1 rupiah (Rp)
  • Main exports: Oil and gas, plywood, textiles, rubber, palm oil
  • GNI per capita: US $2,010 (World Bank, 2008)
  • Internet domain:.id
  • International dialling code: +62

 

Background
The Dutch began to colonize Indonesia in the early 17th century; Japan occupied the islands from 1942 to 1945. Indonesia declared its independence after Japan's surrender, but it required four years of intermittent negotiations, recurring hostilities, and UN mediation before the Netherlands agreed to transfer sovereignty in 1949. Indonesia's first free parliamentary election after decades of repressive rule took place in 1999. Indonesia is now the world's third-largest democracy, the world's largest archipelagic state, and home to the world's largest Muslim population. Current issues include: alleviating poverty, improving education, preventing terrorism, consolidating democracy after four decades of authoritarianism, implementing economic and financial reforms, stemming corruption, holding the military and police accountable for past human rights violations, addressing climate change, and controlling avian influenza. In 2005, Indonesia reached a historic peace agreement with armed separatists in Aceh, which led to democratic elections in Aceh in December 2006. Indonesia continues to face low intensity armed resistance by the separatist Free Papua Movement.
 
Economy
Indonesia, a vast polyglot nation, has weathered the global financial crisis relatively smoothly because of its heavy reliance on domestic consumption as the driver of economic growth. Although the economy slowed significantly from the 6%-plus growth rate recorded in 2007 and 2008, expanding at 4% in the first half of 2009, Indonesia outperformed its regional neighbors and joined China and India as the only G20 members posting growth during the crisis. The government used fiscal stimulus measures and monetary policy to counter the effects of the crisis and offered cash transfers to poor families; in addition, campaign spending in advance of legislative and presidential elections in April and July helped buoy consumption. The government made economic advances under the first administration of President YUDHOYONO, introducing significant reforms in the financial sector, including tax and customs reforms, the use of Treasury bills, and capital market development and supervision. Indonesia's debt-to-GDP ratio in recent years has declined steadily because of increasingly robust GDP growth and sound fiscal stewardship. Indonesia still struggles with poverty and unemployment, inadequate infrastructure, corruption, a complex regulatory environment, and unequal resource distribution among regions. YUDHOYONO's reelection, with respected economist BOEDIONO as his vice president, suggests broad continuity of economic policy, although the start of their term has been marred by corruption scandals. The government in 2010 faces the ongoing challenge of improving Indonesia's insufficient infrastructure to remove impediments to economic growth, while addressing climate change mitigation and adaptation needs, particularly with regard to conserving Indonesia's forests and peatlands.
 

GDP (purchasing power parity):   
$969.2 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 16
$927.5 billion (2008 est.)
$874.2 billion (2007 est.)
note: data are in 2009 US dollars
 
GDP (official exchange rate):   
$521 billion (2009 est.)
 
GDP - real growth rate:   
4.5% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 33
6.1% (2008 est.)
6.3% (2007 est.)
 
GDP - per capita (PPP):   
$4,000 (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 155
$3,900 (2008 est.)
$3,700 (2007 est.)
note: data are in 2009 US dollars
 
GDP - composition by sector:   
agriculture: 15.3%
industry: 47.6%
services: 37.1% (2009 est.)
 
Labor force:   
113.3 million (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 5 
 
Labor force - by occupation:   
agriculture: 42.1%
industry: 18.6%
services: 39.3% (2006 est.)
 
Unemployment rate:   
7.7% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 78
8.4% (2008 est.)
 
Population below poverty line:   
17.8% (2006)
 
Household income or consumption by percentage share:   
lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 32.3% (2006)
 
Distribution of family income - Gini index:   
39.4 (2005)
country comparison to the world: 66
37 (2001)

Investment (gross fixed):   
31.1% of GDP (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 20 
 
Budget:   
revenues: $93.03 billion
expenditures: $101.8 billion (2009 est.)
 
Public debt:   
27.4% of GDP (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 90
28.3% of GDP (2008 est.)
 
Inflation rate (consumer prices):   
4.8% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 142
9.9% (2008 est.)
 
Central bank discount rate:   
10.83% (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 53
8% (31 December 2007)
 
Commercial bank prime lending rate:   
13.6% (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 125
7.21% (31 December 2007)
 
Stock of money:   
$41.71 billion (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 29
$47.78 billion (31 December 2007)
 
Stock of quasi money:   
$131.1 billion (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 22
$127 billion (31 December 2007)

Stock of domestic credit:   
$166.2 billion (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 33
$170.2 billion (31 December 2007)
 
Market value of publicly traded shares:   
$196.7 billion (31 December 2009)
country comparison to the world: 36
$98.76 billion (31 December 2008)
$211.7 billion (31 December 2007)
 
Agriculture - products:   
rice, cassava (tapioca), peanuts, rubber, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, copra; poultry, beef, pork, eggs
 
Industries:   
petroleum and natural gas, textiles, apparel, footwear, mining, cement, chemical fertilizers, plywood, rubber, food, tourism
 

Industrial production growth rate:   
3.5% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 37 
 
Electricity - production:   
134.4 billion kWh (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 27 
 
Electricity - consumption:   
119.3 billion kWh (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 28 
 
Electricity - exports:   
0 kWh (2008 est.)
 
Electricity - imports:   
0 kWh (2008 est.)
 
Oil - production:   
987,500 bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 25 
 
Oil - consumption:   
1.564 million bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 16 
 

Natural gas - consumption:   
36.5 billion cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 24 
 
Natural gas - exports:   
33.5 billion cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 7 
 
Natural gas - imports:   
0 cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 175 
 
Natural gas - proved reserves:   
3.001 trillion cu m (1 January 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 12 
 
Current account balance:   
$10.58 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 18
$125 million (2008 est.)
 
Exports:   
$119.5 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 31
$139.6 billion (2008 est.)
 
Exports - commodities:   
oil and gas, electrical appliances, plywood, textiles, rubber
 
Exports - partners:   
Japan 20.2%, US 9.5%, Singapore 9.4%, China 8.5%, South Korea 6.7%, India 5.2%, Malaysia 4.7% (2008)
 

Imports:   
$84.32 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 32
$116.7 billion (2008 est.)
 
Imports - commodities:   
machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels, foodstuffs
 
Oil - exports:   
85,000 bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 69 
 
Oil - imports:   
671,000 bbl/day (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 19 

Oil - proved reserves:   
3.85 billion bbl (1 January 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 27 
 
Natural gas - production:   
70 billion cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 12 

Imports - partners:   
Singapore 16.9%, China 11.8%, Japan 11.7%, Malaysia 6.9%, US 6.1%, South Korea 5.4%, Thailand 4.9% (2008)
 
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:   
$66.12 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 26
$51.64 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
 
Debt - external:   
$150.7 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 29
$155.1 billion (31 December 2008)
 
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:   
$73.57 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 44
$68.27 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
 
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:   
$9.681 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 51
$6.694 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
 
Exchange rates:   
Indonesian rupiah (IDR) per US dollar - 10,399.2 (2009), 9,698.9 (2008), 9,143 (2007), 9,159.3 (2006), 9,704.7 (2005)
 
Source : bbc , CIA Publications