Research Products Should be Integrated with Industries, President Jokowi Says

President Jokowi leads a Limited Meeting on Downstream Industry for Flagship Products at Presidential Office, Jakarta, Thursday (6/2). (Photo: Rahmat/PR)

Products developed by research agencies and universities should be integrated with industries so that those products can be mass-produced and bring direct impacts for the society, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has said.

According to the President, national industries are nowadays able to produce high-technology products, one of which is Elang Hitam (Black Eagle) Drone, a MALE (Medium Altitude Long Endurance) type drone developed by joint-venture of the Indonesian National Defense Forces (TNI), Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN), Ministry of Defense, and the Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT).

“Next is the Red and White Catalyst, a conversion material from CPO to biofuel developed by the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) and state-owned oil and gas company Pertamina,” President Jokowi said during a Limited Meeting on Downstream Industry for Flagship Products on Thursday (6/2) at the Presidential Office, Jakarta.

On that occasion, the President also mentioned boat construction technology for Flat Plates to manufacture fishing boats that are guaranteed to be safe at a lower price, as well as orthopedic stem cells developed by University of Indonesia and Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital.

The development of those products, he added, must be supported by other institutions.

“Those products need research funding assistant from the State Budget, the SOEs, as well as private sectors,” the President said.

“Other than funding, the research products should have a clear concept and development plan, starting from research phase until the product can be mass-produced. What we need to do is not only to develop downstream sectors of industries but also to develop downstream innovation and research products,” President Jokowi explained.

For that reason, the President also ordered massive transformation in the business ecosystem, adding that the bureaucracy should no longer hinder innovation.

”We must also cut investment barriers in developing local flagship products,” President Jokowi said, while emphasizing that the development of the flagship products must also be integrated, both upstream and downstream, in the national supply chain and global supply chain.

The President also reminded that the local industries must have a major business strategy, adding that Catalysts machines currently being developed by the ITB and Pertamina must be integrated with its downstream industries, such as oleochemical industry, fertilizer industry and biofuel processing industry.

“In the meantime, the drone industry, the ship industry, the salt machinery industry, should also be integrated with the upstream industry to make the products become more competitive,” the President said. (FID/EN)

Translated by: Estu Widyamurti
Reviewed by: M. Ersan Pamungkas