Indonesia wants to be the biggest Islamic economy in the world ahead of Malaysia and Saudi, said Coordinating Economic Minister Airlangga Hartarto.
Speaking at an Islamic boarding school he cited the State of the Global Islamic Economy (SGIE) 2023 report showing that Indonesia’s Islamic economy came in third position, trailing second-ranked Saudi Arabia and first-ranked Malaysia.
“This does not make sense, considering our population of 280 million. Meanwhile, the populations of Malaysia and Saudi may be equal or less compared to that of West Java. Hence, we need to boost our Islamic economy to make it the world’s number 1,” he remarked.
The minister noted that the ecosystem of Islamic economy and finance in Indonesia has been showing developments, especially in the fields of Islamic investment, halal food and beverages, modest fashion, pharmacy, cosmetics, and Muslim-friendly tourism.
Standing among countries with the largest Muslim populations, he said Indonesia still wields huge potential to further develop its Islamic economy and finance.
According to World Bank Malaysia’s Halal economy contributed 7.5% to the GDP in 2020, with the largest component of the Halal Economy coming from food services sector, with business revenue in the sector estimated at US$31 billion (RM128.8 billion) in 2021 and forecast to reach US$47.6 billion (RM201.02 billion) by 2025.
In financing, Malaysia continues to spearhead the international sukuk market, commanding 40.3% market share of global sukuk outstanding and 43.3% share of global sukuk issued in 2022. Majority of global corporate sukuk (69.6% of total corporate sukuk issued) were also issued in Malaysia.
