Editorial
Prabowo needs to restore BI’s leadership to a technocrat who can reassure markets and investors that the central bank’s independence remains intact.
The Bank Indonesia logo adorns the gate of the central bank's headquarters in Jakarta in this undated photograph. (Antara/File)
Perry Warjiyo’s exit from the post of Bank Indonesia (BI) governor marks another loss of a well-regarded technocratic figure from the country’s economic institutions, following Sri Mulyani Indrawati’s resignation as finance minister last year.The resignation comes amid continuing global economic turmoil caused by an energy crisis stemming from the United States-Israeli war on Iran and a fierce trade protectionist regime under US President Donald Trump.
Perry began his career at BI in 1984, working his way up the ranks before becoming deputy governor in 2013. Five years later, he secured the mandate to lead BI as governor under then-president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and proved instrumental in steering monetary policy through multiple crises, including the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022.
