Indonesia

Republic of Indonesia
Flag
Location  Southeast Asia
Capital  Jakarta
Area  1,904,569 sq km
Population  262,787,403

"All things come to those that wait"
(Proverb/Quote of the Week)

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January

January 1 Indonesia on 1 January 2014 launched a new health insurance scheme for poor people with initial service for 48 percent of the country's population, the first step toward its target of covering all Indonesians by 2019. January 2 January 3 January 4 January 5 January 6 Indonesia on 6 January 2025 was formally admitted as a full member of the BRICS bloc of developing economies. January 7 January 8 January 9 January 10 Rizka Raisa Fatimah Ramli, a 17-year-old student from Indonesia, won the UNICEF and Comics Uniting Nations’ worldwide comic contest on 10 January 2019 with a character who helps keep children and young people safe from violence in and around schools. January 11 January 12 Farwiza Farhan of Indonesia won the 2017 Future For Nature Award for promoting the conservation of the Leuser Ecosystem in Aceh, Indonesia. January 13 Indonesian and Australian archaeologists have discovered the world's oldest known animal cave painting in Indonesia - a wild pig - believed to be drawn 45,500 years ago. The painting was found in the Leang Tedongnge cave in a remote valley on the island of Sulawesi, as published in Science Advances journal on 13 January 2021. January 14 January 15 January 16 January 17 January 18 January 19 January 20 January 21 January 22 January 23 January 24 Indonesia on 24 January 2017 was named as the world’s seventh least toxic nation by renewable energy firm Eco Experts, securing a position to a list that takes account of air pollution, renewable energy production and energy consumption. January 25 Indonesia and India signed a series of agreements on 25 January 2025, covering maritime security, health care, traditional medicine, culture, and digital cooperation, witnessed by Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. January 26 January 27 On 27 January 2012, Indonesia and Malaysia signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in respect to the common guidelines concerning treatment of fishermen by maritime law enforcement agencies of the two countries. This came as good news for the long standing plight of the fishermen around the disputed border region between Indonesia and Malaysia. January 28 January 29 January 30 Indonesia’s Kaisar Arkhan, Raefaldhi Amartya Junior and Scott Moses Sunarto on 30 January 2017 were named as the winners at the Google's annual coding competition Google Code-in (GCI). January 31

February

February 1 February 2 February 3 February 4 Smoking was banned in Jakarta's public areas since February 4, 2006. Enforcement difficulties, without self-awareness, remain a big challenge for long-term implementation of the ban. February 5 Dr. Luky Eko Wuryanto of Indonesia was appointed as one of the vice presidents of the China-led development bank Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) on 5 February 2016. February 6 Indonesia and Australia signed a landmark security treaty on 6 February 2026 that commits them to consult each other if either country is threatened. The agreement was signed in Jakarta during a meeting between Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto. Indonesia and twelve other countries which are home to the world's dwindling population of wild tigers on 6 February 2015 agreed to establish an intelligence-sharing network to fight traffickers. February 7 February 8 February 9 February 10 February 11 February 12 February 13 February 14 February 15 February 16 February 17 February 18 February 19 February 20 Dr. Felycia Edi Soetaredjo of Indonesia was named as one of the winners of the 2017 Elsevier Foundation Awards for early-career women scientists in the developing world for her research in Chemical engineering. February 21 February 22 February 23 February 24 February 25 February 26 February 27 February 28 February 29

March

March 1 March 2 March 3 March 4 March 5 March 6 March 7 March 8 March 9 March 10 Indonesia's President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has delivered an historic address to Australia's Parliament on March 10, 2010. It's only the fifth time a world leader has addressed the Australian Parliament. March 11 March 12 March 13 March 14 March 15 Indonesian mixed duo Praveen Jordan and Melati Daeva Oktavianti were crowned mixed doubles champions on 16 March 2020 at the All England Open badminton tournament. March 16 March 17 March 18 March 19 Balambangan in Indonesia, the biosphere reserve in the province of East Java, was added to the list of UNESCO World Network of Biosphere Reserves on 19 March 2016. The list recognizes regions that have maintained a healthy economy while hanging on to significant environmental values. Indonesian actor Donny Damara won the Best Actor honor at the 6th Asian Film Awards for his role in the film Lovely Man. The awards ceremony took place on 19 March 2012 in Hong Kong. March 20 March 21 Indonesian island Bali was named as the global winner at the 2017 Travelers' Choice Awards for destinations by travel planning and booking website TripAdvisor. March 22 March 23 March 24 March 25 Gareth Evans of Indonesia won the Best Editor Award for his film The Raid 2: Berandal at the 9th Asian Film Awards on 25 March 2015 in Macau. March 26 March 27 Indonesia is one of the 11 South Asian countries declared polio-free by the World Health Organisation (WHO) on 27 March 2014. The region has been maintaining its polio-free status for the last 3 years. March 28 March 29 Sidrotun Naim from Indonesia received a Unesco-L’Oreal International Fellowship for Young Women in Life Sciences on 29 March 2012 for her research to investigate the structure and function of the genetic makeup of IMNV, a newly discovered virus in Indonesia that can kill up to 70% of a shrimp population, with devastating economic effects. March 30 March 31

April

April 1 April 2 April 3 April 4 With population estimates of Sumatran rhinos (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis) reduced to less than 100 individuals, a ground-breaking agreement to save the Critically Endangered species was reached on 4 April 2013 between representatives of the Indonesian and Malaysian governments. This is the first time the two countries join their efforts to address the dire state of the species, of which the last wild populations are believed to survive in Sumatra, western Indonesia and Sabah, Malaysia. April 5 April 6 April 7 April 8 April 9 April 10 April 11 Biologist Prigi Arisandi from Indonesia won the 2011 Goldman Environmental Prize, considered as the Nobel Prize for grassroots environmentalism, on 11 April 2011. Prigi was awarded for his local movement to stop industrial pollution from flowing into a river that provides water to three million people. April 12 April 13 April 14 April 15 Aleta Baun from Indonesia won the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize, a prize awarded annually to grassroots environmental activists, on 15 April 2013 for leading hundreds of village women in a peaceful, silent four-year-long occupation of the rich Mutis Mountain in protest of foreign marble mining operations that were destroying their sacred land and simple way of life. April 16 April 17 April 18 April 19 Yuyun Ismawati from Indonesia won the 2009 Goldman Environmental Prize, considered as the Nobel Prize for grassroots environmentalism, on 19 April 2009. Yuyun was awarded for implementing sustainable community-based solutions for waste management problems that provided employment opportunities to low-income people and empowered them to improve the environment. April 20 April 21 April 22 April 23 April 24 April 25 April 26 April 27 April 28 Rudi Putra of Indonesia won the 2014 Goldman Environmental Prize for dismantling illegal palm oil plantations that are causing massive deforestation in northern Sumatra’s Leuser Ecosystem, protecting the habitat of the critically endangered Sumatran rhino. April 29 April 30

May

May 1 May 2 May 3 May 4 May 5 May 6 May 7 May 8 May 9 May 10 Indonesia and Myanmar on 10 May 2014 signed a Visa Exemption agreement for regular passport holders which is expected to increase their trade and investment cooperation and could result in an increase of tourists from both countries. Indonesia, home to the world's third-largest tropical forests and a powerful palm oil industry, has agreed to extend ban on forest clearing, according to a government announcement on 10 May 2013 ahead of the current ban is due to expire later in the month. May 11 May 12 May 13 May 14 May 15 May 16 May 17 May 18 May 19 May 20 May 21 May 22 May 23 May 24 Farwiza Farhan, a forest conservationist who uses policy and advocacy to protect, conserve, and restore the Leuser Ecosystem in Sumatra, Indonesia, won the National Geographic Society 2022 Wayfinder Award. May 25 May 26 May 27 The United Nations awarded two fallen peacekeepers from Indonesia posthumously with the Dag Hammarskjöld Medal on 27 May 2021. May 28 May 29 May 30 May 31

June

June 1 June 2 June 3 June 4 June 5 Indonesian journalist Stefanus Teguh Edi Pramono won the 2013 Agence France-Presse Kate Webb Prize for his searing reportages on the bloody civil war in Syria and his eye-opening investigation into the murky underworld of the Jakarta drug trade. June 6 June 7 June 8 The UN General Assembly on 8 June 2018 elected Indonesia as a non-permanent member to the UN Security Council to serve during 2019-2020. Researchers from Indonesia, Australia and Japan have uncovered the fossilised remains of the 700,000-year-old ancestor of the tiny primitive human, affectionately dubbed the ‘Hobbit’. The discovery was made at a site named Mata Menge on the Indonesian island of Flores and detailed in the journal Nature on 8 June 2016. June 9 June 10 June 11 June 12 Indonesia and other thirty-seven countries met internationally-set hunger eradication targets set for 2015 to halve the percentage of hungry people well ahead of time, the United Nations food agency revealed on 12 June 2013. June 13 An Indonesian project titled Internet Sehat won an award at the World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) Prizes 2017 in the Ethical dimensions of the Information Society category. June 14 June 15 June 16 June 17 June 18 June 19 Indonesia and Russia on 19 June 2025 signed a 2 billion euro deal to create a joint investment platform during Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto visit to Russia following talks in St Petersburg with Russian President Vladimir Putin. June 20 Indonesia’s flag carrier Garuda Indonesia won the World’s Best Cabin Staff award for the fourth year in a row at the SKYTRAX 2017 World Airline Awards. Pemuteran Bay Coral Protection Foundation near the Pemuteran community in Bali was honored with the 2012 Equator Prize by the United Nations for their community model for coral reef restoration and marine management. June 21 June 22 Indonesian microsatellite LAPAN-ORARI (LAPAN A3) for Earth observation (multi-spectral remote sensing) for land use, natural resource and environment monitoring was successfully launched on 22 June 2016 from India. June 23 A highly endangered Sumatran rhinoceros gave birth to a calf on 23 June 2012 in western Indonesia. It is only the fifth known birth in captivity for the species in 123 years. June 24 June 25 June 26 June 27 June 28 June 29 Cultural Landscape of Bali province, the Subak System as a Manifestation of the Tri Hita Karana Philosophyforms acultural landscape of five rice terraces and their water temples that cover 19,500 hectares, in Indonesia were added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List on June 29, 2012. June 30

July

July 1 Indonesia's foreign tourist arrival growth in May 2014 rose 7.37 percent from a year earlier, Statistics Indonesia revealed on 1 July 2014. July 2 July 3 July 4 July 5 July 6 The Dutch government on 6 July 2023 announced to return hundreds of stolen art and cultural artifacts to Indonesia and Sri Lanka, former Dutch colonies. Ombilin Coal Mining Heritage of Sawahlunto in Indonesia was designated as the UNESCO World Heritage Site on 6 July 2019. July 7 July 8 July 9 July 10 July 11 A team of international scientists, including researchers from Indonesia, has developed the world's first vaccine against dengue fever seen to provide moderate protection in large-scale trials. Their study was published in the Lancet journal on 11 July 2014. July 12 July 13 July 14 July 15 July 16 The Indonesian robotics team won a silver medal in the Ustad Ahmad Lahori Award for Innovation in Engineering category at the FIRST Global robotics competition in Washington DC on 16 July 2017. July 17 July 18 National airline of Indonesia Garuda Indonesia received the World's Best Cabin Crew award at the prestigious 2018 Skytrax World Airline Awards. July 19 July 20 July 21 The Indonesian ambassador to Australia, Primo Alui Joelianto, was awarded an honorary professorship by Murdoch University in Perth on July 21, 2011. The symbolic award was in recognition of the Ambassador’s commitment to Australian-Indonesian relations and his support of the University’s work in Indonesian teaching and research. July 22 July 23 Megawati Sukarnoputri, first female President of Indonesia, was in the office from 23 July 2001 to 20 October 2004. July 24 July 25 Komisi Pemberantasan Korupsi (Corruption Eradication Commission), from Indonesia was announced as of one of the recipients of the prestigious 2013 Ramon Magsaysay Award. The organization is being recognized for its fiercely independent and successful campaign against corruption in Indonesia, combining the uncompromising prosecution of erring powerful officials with farsighted reforms in governance systems and the educative promotion of vigilance, honesty, and active citizenship among all Indonesians. July 26 Indonesian mountaineer Ambrosius Ruwindrijarto was announced as of one of the recipients of the prestigious 2012 Ramon Magsaysay Award for his stand against illegal loggers and initiatives for wildlife protection. The Ramon Magsaysay Award is often considered Asia's Nobel Prize. July 27 Charity group Dompet Dhuafa or Wallet of the Poor from Indonesia won the prestigious 2016 Ramon Magsaysay Award for their financial charity work. July 28 July 29 July 30 Celestine Wenardy of Indonesia won the Pioneer Award at the 2019 Google Science Fair for developing an unprecedented noninvasive continuous glucometer that allows for the regular monitoring of blood glucose concentration without drawing blood. July 31 Valentina Sagala from Indonesia was announced as one of the winners of the N-Peace Awards on 31 July 2013 for setting up community-based groups to provide services to victims of human trafficking, and then linked rural community-based organizations through the West Java Anti-Trafficking movement Network. N-Peace is a multi-country network of peace advocates in Asia seeking to advance Women, Peace & Security (WPS) issues.

August

August 1 August 2 Greysia Polii and Apriyani Rahayu of Indonesia won gold in the women’s badminton doubles at the Tokyo Olympics beating favourite China in the final on 2 August 2021. Indonesian scientists have discovered a new frog species, named leptophryne javanica, in Gunung Ceremai mountain in western Java Island of western Indonesia, as revealed by the Indonesian institute of science on 2 August 2018. August 3 August 4 August 5 Papua New Guinea has the highest plant diversity of any island in the world, botanists from Indonesia and their international colleagues have discovered. Their findings were published on 5 August 2020 in the journal Nature. August 6 August 7 August 8 August 9 August 10 August 11 August 12 August 13 August 14 August 15 Indonesian airlines have been cleared to begin flying to the United Sates, after nearly a decade, as announced on 15 August 2016 by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) after safety standards review. August 16 August 17 Indonesia won Mixed Doubles Badminton gold at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games in Brazil. The Independence Day of Indonesia was officially proclaimed on August 17, 1945. With this declaration started the diplomatic and armed-resistance of the Indonesian National Revolution, fighting against the Netherlands until the Dutch declared that they had decided to accept 17 August 1945 as Indonesia's independence date. August 18 The 18th Asian Games, a pan-Asian multi-sport event, was inaugurated in the Indonesian cities of Jakarta and Palembang on 18 August 2018. The games returned to the country after 56 years after Jakarta hosted the 4th edition of the world's second biggest multi-sports event in 1962. August 19 August 20 August 21 August 22 A unique new species of rat that lives off earthworms and doesn't chew or gnaw has been discovered in the forests of southern Sulawesi Island in Indonesia. The shrew-like animal with a long, pointed snout was described in the British journal Biology Letters on 22 August 2012. The discovery shows the island's unique biodiversity. August 23 August 24 August 25 August 26 August 27 August 28 Ridel Yesaya Sumarandak, a 16-year-old teenager from North Sulawesi, secured Indonesia’s first-ever e-sports gold in the Asian Games after defeating China in online battle game Clash Royale in Jakarta on 28 August 2018. August 29 August 30 August 31 WatchDoc, a production house that ingeniously combines documentary filmmaking and alternative platforms to highlight underreported issues in Indonesia, won the prestigious 2021 Ramon Magsaysay Award, regarded as Asia's equivalent to Nobel Prize.

September

September 1 September 2 September 3 September 4 Indonesia was voted as the world’s sixth most beautiful country by the influential travel publisher Rough Guide’s readers, as published on 4 September 2017. September 5 Indonesia ranked as the second most generous nation in the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF) 2017 World Giving Index. The index measures the average percentage of people in each country who donate money, volunteer or help a stranger. September 6 Indonesian movie Maryam won the Orizzonti Award for best short film at the 2014 Venice Film Festival. September 7 A 31,000-year-old skeleton of a young adult unearthed in a cave in Indonesia provides the oldest known evidence of an amputation, according to a new study published on 7 September 2022 in Nature. September 8 September 9 September 10 September 11 September 12 A new Creative Productivity Index developed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) ranked Indonesia as the tenth most efficient country in the Asia and Pacific region at turning creative inputs into tangible innovation, as revealed on 12 September 2014. September 13 September 14 September 15 September 16 September 17 September 18 September 19 Vincent Loka of Indonesia, one of the three founding partners of WateROAM, a social enterprise developing water filtration solutions that bring rapid access to clean drinking water in disaster-hit locations, was recognized as one of the 2016 UN Young Leaders for the Sustainable Development Goals. An international team of researchers, including scientist from Indonesia, has found that female Komodo dragons, world’s largest lizard, are living half as long as males do due to their physically demanding tasks, such as, building huge nests and guarding eggs for up to six months. The results provide important information on the endangered lizards’ lifestyle which may help plan conservation efforts. The findings are published in the journal PLOS ONE on 19 September 2012. September 20 September 21 September 22 Retno Marsudi, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, received the Women of Achievement Award on 22 September 2017 for championing the gender equality agenda in regional and global fora. September 23 Indonesia and the European Union (EU) on 23 September 2025 reached an agreement on a free trade pact after more than nine years of negotiations, a free trade deal that will scrap most tariffs between the regions. September 24 September 25 September 26 September 27 September 28 Indonesian satellite LAPAN A2/Orari was successfully launched into orbit on 28 September 2015, expected to monitor land usage, ship movements, sea resources, fishing explorations, disaster mitigation, floods, population and sea changes. September 29 Scientists in Indonesia have discovered a new species of rat in a remote and mountainous region of Sulawesi Island in Indonesia. The species, which has been named Hog-nosed rat, was described on 29 September 2015 in the Journal of Mammology. September 30

October

October 1 Indonesia's new parliament on 1 October 2019 elected its first female speaker, Puan Maharani Nakshatra Kusyala, daughter of former president Megawati Sukarnoputri and granddaughter of Indonesia's founding president. October 2 Indonesia and China signed a series of economic agreements, to enhance cooperation in several industries, including tourism, technology and space research, on 2 October 2013 as Chinese President Xi Jinping began a trade-focused trip to Indonesia, his first visit to Southeast Asia since taking power. October 3 October 4 October 5 October 6 October 7 October 8 Indonesian and Australian scientists have identified some of the earliest cave paintings produced by humans in a rural area on the Indonesian Island of Sulawesi. The cave paintings are at least 40 thousand years old, according to their study published on 8 October 2014 in the scientific journal Nature. Until now, paintings this old had been confirmed in caves only in Western Europe. October 9 October 10 October 11 October 12 To help Indonesia reduce its high maternal and neonatal mortality rates, Australia's Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Indonesia’s Minister for Health, Ibu Nafsiah M’boi, announced a new $50 million health program on 12 October 2012. The new program will be supported by Australia and will enable Indonesia to provide millions of poor men, women and children with free access to quality health care by improving the effectiveness of thousands of health clinics across Indonesia. October 13 Indonesia's Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Susi Pudjiastuti was included in the BBC global list of 100 inspirational and innovative women for 2017. October 14 October 15 Alessandra Khadijah Usman from Indonesia was crowned as the 3rd runner-up, and won the Best Style Dress award at the Miss Asia Pacific World 2011 pageant on October 15, 2011. October 16 October 17 October 18 October 19 October 20 October 21 Indonesia, Qatar, Pakistan, and Turkey signed an agreement on 21 October 2026 in Doha aimed at boosting defence cooperation and strengthening defensive capabilities. October 22 October 23 A joint international research team, including researchers from Indonesia, has described a new songbird species — the Rote Leaf-Warbler Phylloscopus rotiensis named after Rote, Indonesia where it was found. The discovery was published in the journal Scientific Reports on 23 October 2018. October 24 October 25 October 26 October 27 Indonesia was elected as a council member of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) on 27 October 2014 for four years from the East Asia & Australasia region. ITU is the United Nations specialized agency for information and communication technologies. October 28 October 29 October 30 October 31

November

November 1 November 2 November 3 November 4 Indonesia's first international gallery of contemporary art, the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Nusantara (Museum MACAN), was officially opened on 4 November 2017. November 5 November 6 November 7 November 8 Indonesian and Australian researchers have identified the earliest known painting of an animal, from 40,000 years ago, in a cave on the island of Borneo, Indonesia. Their study was published in the journal Nature on 8 November 2018. November 9 November 10 November 11 The 26th Southeast Asian Games, the largest multi-sport event in the region, was opened in Palembang, Indonesia on 11 November 2011. This year is the fourth time for Indonesia to be host country for Southeast Asian countries sports festival. November 12 November 13 November 14 The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), a geo-political and economic organization of Southeast Asian countries, Summit 2011 was held in Indonesia from 14-19 November 2011. The United States and Russia participated for the first time in the ASEAN Summit in 2011. November 15 Indonesia and 14 other countries on 15 November 2020 agreed to form the world’s largest free trade bloc, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), at a virtual ASEAN Summit. November 16 November 17 Former President of Indonesia Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was announced as a winner of the UN’s top environmental accolade the Champions of the Earth award on 17 November 2014 for making environmental integrity a central tenet of Indonesia’s sustainable development and enabling his nation to achieve economic growth while supporting and promoting low-carbon. November 18 November 19 November 20 November 21 Indonesian researchers have discovered what is believed to be the wreck of a German submarine that was torpedoed off the main island of Java during World War II, according to an official announcement on 21 November 2013. November 22 November 23 November 24 Indonesian environmental campaigner Salsabila Khairunnisa on 24 November 2020 was included in BBC's annual list of 100 inspiring and influential women from around the world. November 25 November 26 November 27 November 28 November 29 November 30

December

December 1 December 2 Three genres of traditional dance in Bali, Indonesia was added to the 2015 UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Lorentz National Park is a protected area in Indonesia which incorporates a continuous, intact transect from snow cap to tropical marine environment, including extensive lowland wetlands. The park was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO on December 2, 1999. December 3 December 4 Indonesian and Australian researchers have uncovered a total of 28 rock art sites dating from at least 2,500 years ago on the island of Kisar in Indonesia. The ancient cave paintings were reported in the Cambridge Journal of Archaeology on 4 December 2017. Indonesian handicrafts, woven-bags-creating tradition by Indonesia’s Papua people, is inscribed on the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) List of Intangible Cultural Heritage on 4 December 2012 – part of the world body’s ongoing efforts to preserve endangered practices from fading into extinction. December 5 December 6 December 7 Nicke Widyawati, CEO and president-director of Indonesian oil and gas company Pertamina, was ranked 27th on 2021 Forbes' list of the Most Powerful Women in the World. December 8 December 9 On 9 December 2011, after 64 years, the Netherlands formally apologized for a massacre in the rural Indonesian village of Rawagededs on 9 December 1947 of hundreds of boys and young men. The massacre happened during Indonesia's bitter struggle for independence from the Netherlands. December 10 December 11 Cave art depicting a hunting scene has been found in central Java, Indonesia dated to 44,000 years old, making it the oldest rock art created by humans, as revealed in the journal Nature on 11 December 2019. Bandung of Indonesia was declared as the member of the 2015 UNESCO Creative Cities Network in the Design category. December 12 December 13 December 14 December 15 Indonesian diplomat Retno Marsudi earned the Norwegian Order of Merit in 2011 for her outstanding role as the Indonesian ambassador to Norway. December 16 December 17 December 18 December 19 December 20 December 21 December 22 December 23 December 24 December 25 December 26 December 27 December 28 December 29 December 30 December 31

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