Special Report: Indonesia without Java

By Joshua Chambers

Interviews with three governors from rising provinces.

Indonesia is much bigger than Java, but that island has always received a disproportionate amount of attention. As a political and commercial hub for centuries, it dominates the landscape.

But since the Reformasi, there have been fascinating changes within the regional governments. Many of these are pioneers, pressing ahead with interesting reforms that are worth following.

GovInsider has sought to redress the balance by interviewing Governors from leading regions - setting out their plans and priorities for the years ahead.

This year, we spoke with the Governors of:


  • South Sumatra, which is hosting the 2018 Asian Games
  • Lampung, which plans to overcome political instability and attract investment
  • South Sulawesi, which intends to be the logistics hub of Indonesia

Indonesia’s provincial patchwork has, sewn into its batik, many intricate differences. But when you zoom out, the image seems rather attractive.