INA Targets Food Sector to Support Government Priority Programs

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — The Indonesia Investment Authority, or INA, has begun targeting investments in the food and agriculture sectors to support the government's priority programs. This new direction is expected to strengthen national food security while also enhancing the added value of Indonesian agricultural products.

INA Chief Investment Officer (CIO), Christopher Ganis, ensured that the direction of this investment would not conflict with the government's priority programs. This is because, as a sovereign wealth fund (SWF), INA is mandated to contribute to sustainable national economic development.

"INA's priority investment sectors must be perpendicular to industries that receive special support or attention from the government," he said in a discussion with the editorial staff of the daily Kompas at the Kompas Tower, Jakarta, Wednesday (2/7/2025).

There are six priority sectors of INA that reflect the mandate to support national development while providing commercial returns. These six sectors are transportation, logistics, and infrastructure, digital, green and blue economy, health, advanced materials; and food and agriculture.

Of these six sectors, the advanced materials sector and food and agriculture are the two new priority sectors in 2025, which are in line with the aspirations of the Astacita program of the government of President Prabowo Subianto and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka.

In relation to the investment plan in the food and agriculture sector, the Director of Investment of INA, Johan Batubara, stated that he has not yet disclosed information regarding the investment targets or the projects that INA will focus on.

Nevertheless, he assured that there are three main spirits that will serve as the basis and priorities for INA in determining investments in this sector, namely supporting food security, strengthening Indonesia's position as a center for agricultural product exports, and encouraging innovation throughout the agricultural supply chain.

"For example, we have seen ports that bring food from abroad. We met with several to modernize and think about how to modernize. Thus, from the import side, it is faster, cheaper, and there is no waste," he said.

Another example is by optimizing the downstream processing of superior domestic food commodities, such as seaweed, coffee, and chocolate. The final products will have added value, both for those marketed in the domestic market and for export markets.

"The spirit of the three is there, but the methods can vary depending on the commodities. At this moment, I cannot mention the names of the projects or their targets, but there will certainly be commercial targets that must be achieved," he stated.

As for the advanced materials sector, INA invests in the upstream side while developing strategic partnerships to secure raw material supplies. At the same time, investments are also made to develop supply chains in the middle and downstream sides.

In this sector, INA has established an investment portfolio in collaboration with PT LBM Energi Baru Indonesia for the expansion project of the largest Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) cathode production facility outside of China. This year, INA injected an investment of 350 million US dollars (approximately 5.68 trillion IDR) into this project.

By the end of 2024, the total managed funds (assets under management) managed by INA reached 9.5 billion US dollars or grew 92 percent from the initial capital of managed funds of 5 billion US dollars. Of the total managed funds, the total cumulative investment distribution value has reached 4 billion US dollars consisting of 1.6 billion US dollars of INA investment and 2.4 billion US dollars of partner investment.

The VP of Compliance of INA, Restu Pranandari, added that in making investment decisions, INA already has policies and standards for global SWF governance. Since September 20, 2022, INA has been a full member of the International Forum of Sovereign Wealth Funds (IFSWF).

INA's investment policy is established in accordance with international standards and best market practices. Risk-based decision-making also serves as an important foundation for INA's investment operations in achieving its mandate and meeting investor partner expectations.

"But because our mandate is to co-invest with partners, we usually need to adjust to the requirements of our co-investment partners. So usually we will meet in the middle without having to sacrifice one of the interests," he said.

At the same opportunity, the Executive Director of Synergy Policies, Dinna Prapto Raharja, reminded that to achieve the goal of creating intergenerational prosperity, the SWF needs independence and should not rely on the policy direction of those in power.

"Therefore, from a socio-political perspective, the hope is that in the long term, the country where the SWF is located can become more prosperous, and that prosperity should be felt across generations," he stated.