INDONESIA

KONEKSI Mentioned in Kompas Media

• KONEKSI, a knowledge partnership platform between Australia and Indonesia, was mentioned in two articles from Kompas discussing Australia’s commitment to partnering with Indonesia, as the latter is the second-closest neighbouring country to Australia after Papua New Guinea. This commitment, as outlined in the Australia-ASEAN Strategy, generally focuses on sectors such as e-commerce, agriculture, food, natural resources, energy transition, education, vocational training, tourism, healthcare services, and the development of MSMEs.

Source:

(Kompas Printed, Page 4, 3 January 2024), Bekerja Sama dalam Kesetaraan

(Kompas.id, 3 January 2024), Indonesia, Australia, dan Vanuatu Bekerja Sama dalam Kesetaraan

Research and Technology

• BRIN has transferred the state assets previously used by the National Institute of Aeronautics and Space (LAPAN) before its integration with BRIN to the Ministry of Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform (PAN RB) to optimize the use of national assets.
• PT Etana Biotechnologies Indonesia (Etana) is developing a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine based on mRNA technology. This vaccine has obtained certification from the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Assessment Institute (LPPOM) and the Indonesian Council of Ulama (MUI).
• Vice Minister of Communication and Information, Nezar Patria, supports universities in conducting studies and research activities on artificial intelligence (AI).

Research and Funding

• The Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology targets 193 thousand students to participate in the Merdeka Belajar Kampus Merdeka (MBKM) Program in 2024.
• Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani Indrawati stated that the government has disbursed IDR 20 trillion for various scholarship and research funding for university students throughout 2023.

Research and Innovation

• BRIN emphasises the food sector as the main focus of their research in national development. BRIN has 2,388 research titles and 1,217 studies for 2023.
• The Indonesian Embassy for Australia in Canberra invited the Indonesian diaspora to participate in strengthening the relationship between Indonesia and Australia, including in education and research.

Research and Women

• The Coordinating Ministry for Human Development and Cultural Affairs hopes that the grand design “Community Participation Strategy in Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Development” can be a solution to the bottleneck issue in ensuring community participation in the sectors of women’s development and child protection.
• Head of the Research and Development Division of the Association of Education and Teachers (P2G), Feriyansyah, stated that the implementation of Minister of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Regulation No. 46 of 2023 concerning the Prevention and Handling of Violence in the Educational Unit Environment (PPKSP) is still formalistic and needs further application improvement.

Environment and Climate Change (ECC)

• The Indonesia Cerah Foundation and SUMA UI found that the public wants green jobs to be a political policy priority in Indonesia and wanted universities to adopt curricula related to the climate crisis and green jobs.
• The social forestry program continues to provide equitable access to forests for all levels of society. With this program, the proportion of public access to forests could increase to thirty percent. 
• The International Conference ‘Bali Ocean Days’ will be held in Bali on 19-20 January 2024 to promote the development of inclusive and sustainable Blue Economy in Indonesia and the surrounding regions.

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