In the past few years, publicly-listed construction firm PT Wijaya Karya Tbk. (WIKA) has been actively expanding to the African market amidst the high needs of domestic infrastructure development. At the same time, studies on rising state intervention in the global economy are gaining attention from IPE scholars. Based on these factors, this paper examines the role of the government in WIKA's expansion to Africa from the perspective of state capitalism. By examining the role of President Joko

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... dodo's regime through (1) centralized planning; (2) economic diplomacy; and (3) capital assistance, this paper argues that WIKA's expansion is aimed not only at generating profits, but is also influenced by political factors to meet national interests. As a state-owned enterprise (SOE), WIKA is positioned as the national champion in the infrastructure sector, which is deemed as a strategic industry for President Widodo's regime. This paper is expected to fill the void of political economy research on the expansion of national SOEs abroad. Keywords: SOEs, state role, state capitalism, overseas expansion, WIKA.