Good news for Indonesia's aviation industry and Indonesian airlines. After a nearly decade-long ban, the US aviation regulator (Federal Aviation Administration, or FAA) finally allows Indonesian airlines to enter US airspace again. The ban was imposed in 2007 due to safety concerns. The FAA announced on Monday (15/08) that the safety status of Indonesia's aviation industry was upgraded by one notch to category 1. This opens doors for Indonesian airlines to serve flight routes to the USA as well as code shares with US airlines.

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It remains unclear whether Indonesia will revise the export ban that is stipulated by the 2009 Mining Law (Law No. 4/2009 on Mineral and Coal Mining) and is supposed to come into effect on 12 January 2017. The 2009 Mining Law stipulates a ban on the export of unprocessed and semi-processed ores from Indonesia. The regulation aims to boost development of the nation's smelting capacity, hence becoming an exporter of materials that are positioned higher up in the value chain while curbing Indonesia's current dependence on exports of raw materials.

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A year ago - between June and October 2015 - severe man-made forest fires on the Indonesian islands of Sumatra and Kalimantan released some 11.3 million tons of carbon per day, caused Indonesia to experience damages estimated at 1.9 percent of GDP (World Bank estimate), and spread toxic haze to other parts of Southeast Asia. Not only its regional neighbors but most of the world directed its anger at Indonesian authorities that failed to combat the fires, and more importantly, failed to uphold laws that forbid the slash-and-burn practice.

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A better-than-expected GDP growth figure in the second quarter of 2016 should not be a reason for Indonesia to become complacent. On the contrary, efforts to boost economic growth need to be continued. One of the keys to unlock accelerated economic growth is to optimize spending of government funds at the regional level. Alarmingly, some IDR 214.7 trillion (approx. USD $16.5 billion) of central government funds that are allocated to regional governments in the 2016 state budget are left untouched at bank accounts.

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