Jakarta. President Prabowo Subianto gathered Indonesian tycoons, including real estate magnates Sugianto "Aguan" Kusuma and James Riady, at the palace for talks on the newly minted Danantara on Thursday evening.

Other high-profile guests included Prajogo Pangestu, Anthony Salim, Boy Thohir, Franky Widjaja, Tahir, and Tomy Winata. These businessmen come from various backgrounds, starting from food, real estate, energy, and financial services to manufacturing. According to the presidential press bureau, Danantara was a major talking point in that meeting.

This fund, which will consolidate assets of state-run enterprises, is only a week old but is often dubbed as Indonesia’s future economic driver that can help lift economic growth to 8 percent. Danantara is expected to have $900 billion in assets under management once it integrates all government-run businesses, making it one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds. The fund is starting with $20 billion in initial investment, which it will invest in nickel and copper production chains, oil refineries, petrochemical plants, food production, and many more. 

"Industrialization and investment management through Danantara became major topics in the discussions," the press bureau said on Friday, commenting on Prabowo's talks with some of the country’s richest men.

The bureau, however, did not go into detail about the Danantara talks and whether Prabowo had specifically requested these tycoons to partner with the fund. However, according to the bureau, the meeting was one of the government’s attempts to build “close communication” with the private sector to ensure economic stability and attract investments, which will eventually lead to job creation.

Prabowo had also briefed the businessmen on his signature free school meal program. Over the past few months, the government has been distributing nutrient-rich meals to schools and expectant mothers in hopes of improving kids' nutritional intake. The multibillion-dollar program aims to reach nearly 83 million people. Infrastructure development and the textile industry also came up in the discussions. Indonesia's textile industry is currently under immense pressure due to the influx of cheap imports and mass layoffs.

Aguan owns Agung Sedayu Group, one of Indonesia's largest real estate developers. James is part of the Riady business empire and owns the diversified conglomerate Lippo Group. Prajogo Pangestu founded the resource-based Barito Pacific Group. 

Anthony's Salim Group is behind the convenience store giant Indomaret. Boy Thohir is the president director of the coal giant Adaro Energy. Franky Widjaja is the son of Sinar Mas Group founder Eka Tjipta Widjaja. Sinar Mas' businesses range from pulp and paper to palm oil. Tahir founded the Mayapada Group conglomerate which has invested in Indonesia's new capital Nusantara. Last but not least, Tomy Winata is the owner of the Artha Graha Network which operates in the financial services, agroindustry, and retail sectors.

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