Mahendra Siregar
Chairman of Indonesian Investment Coordination Board (BKPM)
Mahendra Siregar has been the Vice Minister of Finance since 2011. He
was appointed Vice Minister of Trade by President Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono on 11 November 2009.
He graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University
of Indonesia in 1986 and received his Masters in Economics from
Monash University in 1991.
Mahendra joined the Foreign Affairs Ministry in 1986 and was assigned to various postings,
including Economic Third Secretary of the Indonesian Embassy in London (1992-1995) and
Information Counsellor of the Indonesian Embassy in Washington DC (1998-2001). He then
joined the Coordinating Ministry in late 2001 as Special Assistant to Minister Dorodjatun
Kuntjoro-Jakti. Afterwards, he was appointed as Deputy Minister and put in charge of
International Economic and Financial Relations in May 2005 by Minister Aburizal Bakrie.
He maintained the assignment during the tenures of Coordinating Minister Boediono (20062008) and Coordinating Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati (2008-2009).
He then served as Chairman and CEO of the newly established Indonesia Eximbank in
September 2009 until December 2009. He was also Commissioner of Indonesian Aircraft
Manufacturing Company PTDI (2003-2008) and Commissioner of PT Antam, Tbk (20082009).
Mahendra also served as the Indonesian representative at the UNFCCC Adaptation Fund
Board from 2007-2009.
He is President Yudhoyono’s Sherpa to the G-20 meetings.
The direction of BKPM Policy
As of now, neither SBY nor Mahendra have spoken out on the appointment, therefore no
information was found regarding Mahendra’s agenda as the new Chairman of BKPM.
However, with his appointment, people expect him to be able to lure back investors since he
has a solid grasp of international relations and understands investment and economic
backgrounds.
According to Chairman of the Indonesian Entrepreneurs Association Sofjan Wanandi,
Mahendra Siregar is the right person for the job, as Mahendra not only has experience in
trade and finance, but is also a trustworthy person for foreigners as he has been a
spokesperson for several events such as the G20 and APEC.
Minister of Finance Chatib Basri felt that Mahendra was best suited for the position as Head
of BKPM. Chatib appreciated Mahendra’s track record and his role in encouraging the
development of the financial industry and the capital market. Moreover, Mahendra has a solid
track record on investment and trade diplomacy. The reason behind appointing Mahendra as
head of BKPM likely has something to do with the expectation that he will be able to lure
investors back to the country.
Minister of Industry MS Hidayat believes that Mahendra is capable of attracting investors,
since before his position in the Ministry of Finance, Mahendra acquired extensive experience
with trade diplomacy as expert staff for the Indonesian embassy in London and Washington.
Moreover, he also served as the deputy minister of trade under the previous administration.
The Dino puzzle
The known candidates include Dino Patti Djalal, Emirsyah Satar, Karen and other heads of
BUMN companies. Executive Director Institute for Development Economics and Finance
(Indef) Ahmad Erani Yustika was surprised by the appointment of Mahendra Siregar, as he
was not on the initial list of candidates.
The strongest candidate among those previously mentioned is Dino Patti Djalal, who is
currently the ambassador of Indonesia to the U.S. The media today stated that Dino Patti
Djalal announced he would resign from his current post as Indonesian Ambassador to the
U.S. following his decision to join the Democratic Party’s presidential primary. Dino
officially tendered his resignation to Foreign Affairs Minister Marty Natalegawa. Dino said
he was willing to withdraw from his post to abide by the convention’s regulations, which,
among others, barred the participation of civil servants.
The Democratic Party’s convention will last from September this year until April 2014.
Politicians joining the convention include Dino Patti Djalal, Ali Masykur Musa, Anies
Baswedan, Dahlan Iskan, Endriartono Sutarto, Gita Wirjawan, Hayono Isman, Irman
Gusman, Marzukie Alie, Pramono Edhie Wibowo, and Sinyo Haris Surandjang.