Universitas Gadjah Mada
Faculty of Economics and Business

Proud news once again comes from the Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Gadjah Mada (FEB UGM) students. On Saturday (23/11), the Liquidity Team, consisting of Fikri Adib Rianto (Economics 2020) and Triani (Economics 2020), successfully secured the first prize in the Policy Recommendation Competition category, one of the series of events in the Indonesia Economic Outlook (IEO) 2024. IEO itself is an annual series of forums, seminars, and competitions with an economic theme organized by the Indonesian Economic and Development Studies of the Faculty of Economics and Business, Universitas Indonesia (Kanopi FEB UI).

In the competition, the Liquidity Team had to go through three stages: Policy Recommendation Essay (PRE), Policy Recommendation Presentation (PRP), and Policy Recommendation Debate (PRD). In the first stage (PRE), the Liquidity Team composed an essay on monetary policy. Specifically, the team delved into the financial sector in Indonesia, especially related to financial institutions and instruments.

Comprehensive analysis successfully propelled the Liquidity Team as one of the six teams advancing to the next round, namely PRP, held on Friday (22/11) at FEB UI. In the PRP stage, they had to present their essay ideas for ten minutes before the judging panel. A twelve-minute question-and-answer session with the judges followed the presentation session.

Meanwhile, the final stage of this event was PRD, which was held the next day, on Saturday (23/11). The six teams were required to argue in a debate on economic issues. The debate motion obtained by the Liquidity Team was related to ways to reduce the incremental capital-output ratio (ICOR) in Indonesia. ICOR is an indicator that reflects the efficiency of investments. The lower the ICOR, the more efficient the investments. Thoughtful arguments led the Liquidity Team to achieve second place.

"Of course, we are delighted. Initially, we didn't expect it," expressed Fikri Adib Rianto, usually called Adib, one of the team members, when announced as the winner. However, behind this achievement, Adib also shared his team's challenges. According to him, time was the biggest challenge during the competition. Moreover, in the debate round, all groups had to delve into all six debate motions, even though, in the end, they would only debate on one motion.

As a closing remark, Adib advised his fellow FEB UGM students who intend to participate in similar competitions. "To compose a paper, friends need to do much research, read journals and news, and, if possible, connect it with economic theories studied in class. Moreover, the paper will be better if it uses econometric methods," said Adib. According to him, if not using econometric methods, the paper must have strong reasoning to support the arguments presented. He also emphasized the importance of seeking advice from senior students with similar competition experience.

Congratulations on the achievement, Liquidity Team!

Reportage: Rizal Farizi