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PhD candidate and Australia Awards Scholarship holder Riznaldi Akbar was awarded a Hadi Soesastro Prize in Canberra last week.

Presented by Foreign Minister, The Hon Julie Bishop, the awards support Indonesian academics who are completing their doctorates in Australia and aim to develop young leaders and promote educational links between the two countries.

Only two prizes are awarded each year to recipients - one male, one female - who are making a significant contribution in their field and to the broader Australia-Indonesia relationship.

Riznaldi, currently undertaking his PhD in Economics at the UWA Business School, will receive up to $25,000 to assist with his research into debt management strategies of Indonesia’s central and local governments.

“It’s a real honour to have received this award, and I look forward to putting the prize to good use through my research,” Riznaldi says.

Governments across the world are constantly striving to get the balance right between fiscal prudence and borrowing for economic development, and Riznaldi says Indonesia is no exception.

“My research focuses on ways that government could benefit from a successful debt management and borrowing program, which would facilitate a beneficial return on investment.

“The end goal is to provide some key policy recommendations and practical implementations for central and local governments in regards to the debt management strategies,” he says.