Indonesia and Philippines: A tale of two neighbours

Indonesian President Joko Widodo, affectionately known as “Jokowi,” is one of the most admired leaders in the democratic world and beyond. As this year’s G20 president, he successfully hosted a consequential meeting that produced a détente between the superpowers. - Reuters

JAKARTA (Philippine Daily Inquirer/Asia News Network): Exactly five decades ago, the Philippines was head-and-shoulders above its biggest immediate neighbour, Indonesia. As economist James Boyce notes in his definitive book, “The Philippines: The Political Economy of Growth and Impoverishment in the Marcos Era” (1993), our per capita income in 1962 was almost US$500, more than twice that of neighbouring Indonesia ($190).

As for China, which would soon turn into the most dramatic capitalist expansion story in human history, its per capita income was almost a fifth ($105) of that of the Philippines. Astonishingly, back then, an average Filipino was as wealthy/poor as his Taiwanese counterpart ($505), but clearly better off than his South Korean counterpart ($330).