In a session of the World Economic Forum on East Asia on Tuesday, Budi Gunadi Sadikin, the chief executive of Bank Mandiri,  expressed his optimism about Indonesia’s bright future by comparing himself and John Riady, the executive director of Lippo Group, seated next to him.

“I’m 50 years old and I represent the present Indonesia, while John, who is 30 years old, represents the present and the future of Indonesia. So be optimistic of the future of Indonesia,” he said.

Budi’s point is that Indonesia has a lot of potential leaders in the business, politics and sociocultural fields. And we agree with this assessment.

We have young people in various different sectors who can shoulder the current and future challenges the old generation has no hope of handling. We have many young leaders with a conscience and the good faith to work for the advancement of this country.

There is Sandiaga Uno, a successful entrepreneur; Anies Baswedan, a respected educator; and Rieke Dyah Pitaloka and Budiman Sudjatmiko, both accomplished politicians. In the military, we have Agus Yudhoyono, the oldest son of former president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Sandiaga, only 44 and already one of the country’s wealthiest individuals, has turned to politics with many expressing hope he can make a difference in Indonesia’s most rotten field. Anies, 45, is the country’s education minister, and brings with him hope of meaningful reforms in our schools.

Rieke, 41, and Budiman, 45, are the two engines of common sense in the ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), while Agus is already being talked about as a future president.

These young and talented people will be around for some time to come and will one day lead the country. With them at helm, we have plenty of reason to be optimistic about Indonesia’s future.