Jakarta. Sovereign wealth fund Danantara has signaled that it may install more foreigners in the nascent export body after the agency caught attention for being run by an expatriate.

The resource-rich economy has set up Danantara Sumberdaya Indonesia (DSI) to channel exports of strategic commodities such as palm oil, ferroalloys, and coal through a single entity. Danantara has appointed Luke Thomas Mahony, the ex-director of the nickel miner Vale, to lead DSI. Mahony -- whom local media reports wrote as an Australian national -- is now running DSI all by himself, but the agency is expected to grow its manpower in the coming months.

Danantara Chief Investment Officer Pandu Sjahrir said Tuesday that the three targeted commodities were both complex and enormous industries, hence the need for international recruitment.

“There are only 2,000 coal traders across the globe that we can recruit. There are also crude palm oil [talents] overseas,” Pandu told the Investor Daily Roundtable conference in Jakarta on Tuesday.

“The same goes for trade financing. Most of the talents specialized in this field are concentrated abroad. We have to hire them for the transfer of knowledge regarding commodity financing,” Pandu said.

He went on to say how DSI is open to picking employees of other state-owned enterprises (SOEs). For context, all SOEs are now under Danantara’s wings, making such maneuvers easier.

Since late last year, Danantara has opened doors for foreign recruitment, a move that President Prabowo Subianto himself had defended as necessary to lift Indonesia’s SOEs to “international standards”.

“You [Danantara] can look for the best brains and talents,” Prabowo said.

“Expatriates and non-Indonesians can now lead our SOEs.”

He went on to say how DSI is open to hiring people working at other SOEs. A notable example was when two foreigners assumed the leadership of flag carrier Garuda Indonesia. Balagopal Kunduvara, a former executive at Singapore Airlines, became Garuda’s chief financial officer. Seasoned aviation professional Neil Raymond Mills became its director of transformation.

The new trade regime will enter a transition period on Monday. During this time, companies of the aforementioned commodities are expected to report their sales to DSI. They will still handle the deals with the foreign buyers before handing over the task -- including shipments -- to DSI next year.

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