BEc (Hons) '79, MEc '81, HonLittD '13
01 Aug 2026
Professor Mari Elka Pangestu is a globally respected economist and policy leader, with a distinguished career across government, international development, and academia.
She served as Indonesia's Minister of Trade from 2004 to 2011, and as Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy from 2011 to 2014, playing a key role in advancing trade policy and economic development. Professor Pangestu was the first female Chinese-Indonesian to hold a cabinet position in Indonesia.
She is widely respected both in her country and overseas and is recognised as a highly effective public speaker and minister. For her government service she was awarded the Mahaputra Award (highest order for public service awarded by the president of the Republic of Indonesia) in 2013.
She has acquired vast experience over 30 years in academia, second-track processes, international organizations and government, working in areas related to international trade and investment in the multilateral, regional, and domestic setting. As Minister of Trade she played an active role in the World Trade Organisation (WTO); initiated various Ministers of Trade meetings; and provided leadership in regional cooperation at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 2011, and at Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). Before becoming Minister, from 1987 to 2003, she provided policy advice on international trade and investment issues, political economy of reforms, and sustainable development issues.
From 2020 to 2023, she was the Managing Director of Development Policy and Partnerships at the World Bank, leading global efforts on development policy and partnerships.
As of 2026, she is a Professor of International Economics at the Faculty of Economics, University of Indonesia and is on the Board of Directors of the Center of Strategic and International Studies, Indonesia's leading think tank. She also serves as Vice Chair of Indonesia’s National Economic Council and Special Envoy of the President for International Trade and Multilateral Cooperation and as international board member of the World Resources Institute (WRI), continuing to shape economic strategy and global engagement,
Professor Pangestu obtained her Bachelor's and Master's degrees from the Australian National University and her PhD from the University of California, Davis, where she specialsed in macroeconomics, and international trade and finance.
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