The government and private sector in Indonesia have collaborated to train 9 million digital professionals by 2030 as part of the country’s digitalization process.
Indonesia has leapt on the digitalisation wave that has swept Southeast Asia. Most recently, in 2018, the Indonesian government launched the “Making Indonesia 4.0” industry 4.0 initiative, which includes key sectors such as food and beverage, automotive electronics, chemicals, textile, and garment. Ministers of Industry have also reached a consensus that IoT is the most important backbone for Indonesia’s push toward Industry 4.0, a view that is validated by a report from the Ministry of Communication and IT. The value of IoT in Indonesia is expected to reach US$ 30 billion (IDR 444 trillion) by 2022, demonstrating the enormous economic opportunities that come with IoT development.
The government has consistently supported digital talent development programmes as one of the keys to digital transformation as part of a larger plan to digitiSe Indonesia. To that end, the Communications and Information Ministry is offering the 2021 Digital Talent Scholarship (DTS), a stimulus programme that began in 2018 to train new digitally savvy Indonesian talents.
The head of research and human resource development for the Communications and Information Ministry stated that the programme aimed to train highly skilled professionals in the fields of information technology and communications.
“Digital talent is one of the keys to a digital transformation. DTS is one of the programmes supporting Indonesia’s President instructions on the national digital transformation, which has a target of 9 million highly skilled digital talents by 2030,” he said in a statement.
Concurrently, the Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Ministry’s Directorate General of Higher Education launched the ‘freedom campus’ programme, which focuses on entrepreneurship and digital start-ups. The directorate general’s 2021 programmes, according to the directorate general, will involve close collaboration with the Communications and Information Ministry in the development of a start-up-centric curriculum, as well as a massive online training programme for both students and teachers, with a target of 100,000 participants.
“Through the collaboration between the DTS’ Talent Scouting Academy [TSA] and the Kampus Merdeka programme, the Communications and Information Ministry also facilitates students who are interested and talented in the information technology and communication sector,” he said.
The private sector is also lending its support to the government programme, such as Indonesia’s e-commerce behemoth, which will offer a certified internship programme in software engineering, marketing, and business development.
Through the academy, which includes the START Summit tech conference, the e-commerce giant will also provide a learning centre for Indonesian tech practitioners. The e-commerce behemoth has launched the AI Centre of Excellence with the University of Indonesia (UI) and is collaborating with a university on an e-commerce subject.
“The availability, readiness and maturity of digital talent are some of the keys to realising a globally competitive technology industry. Through our e-commerce academy, we are providing a platform to hone Indonesia’s digital talents to encourage the creation of more innovations, as well as promote Indonesia’s tech scene,” said the academy lead.
Jakarta was named the second-best ecosystem for start-ups in the Top 100 Emerging Ecosystems list after Mumbai, India, according to the 2020 Global Start-up Ecosystem report. The assessment’s indicators include start-up performance, funding, market reach, and digital talent. Jakarta’s digital talent assessment received the lowest score of the four.
This data demonstrates Indonesia’s growing demand for digital talent. As a result, there is a pressing need for collaborations between the government, digital platforms, and academia in developing digital talent in order to meet the 9 million targets by 2030.
Adopting a digital transformation strategy should be a top priority for any organisation that wants to not only survive but also thrive in today’s fast-paced world of change. Most organisations, however, are not adequately prepared to design, implement, or apply digital technology to various aspects of their business.
A lack of knowledge within teams, organisational culture, and the effectiveness of IT teams are all common roadblocks in digital transformations. A digital transformation necessitates a new way of thinking and management approach, as well as professionals with the necessary skills to promote and lead it.