Indonesian Microfinance at the Crossroads: Caught between Popular and Populist Policies

This essay has been commissioned for the Microfinance Regulation and Supervision Resource Center, funded by the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP) and implemented by the IRIS Center.Starting with a review of past successes and failures, Sumantoro Martowijoyo moves the reader into the present and the future. He criticizes the government's decision to discard local institutions in favor of modern institutions, and expresses concern over signs that subsidized lending practices may be returning in full force.