Jakarta, Sept. 24 -- Indonesia's House of Representatives (DPR) is pushing a bill that would downgrade the Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) to agency status, Deputy Speaker Sufmi Dasco Ahmad said on Wednesday.

He clarified that the SOE Ministry will not merge with the sovereign wealth fund manager, Daya Anagata Nusantara Investment Management Agency (Danantara), but will become a separate entity known as the SOEs Managing Agency.

"It will remain distinct, but with a new status as an agency," Ahmad said at the parliamentary complex in Jakarta.

He explained that the bill, which revises Law No. 19 of 2003, is considered urgent, as many ministerial functions have already been taken over by Danantara. The ministry now mostly acts ...