"I call all researchers, industries, businesses, and people to have strong commitments in promoting and accelerating development based on science and technologies to improve national competence," the minister said at the 21st commemmoration of the National Technology Day here on Wednesday.
He said mastering science and technology is a must to be able to compete with other nations.
This action, Nasir added, should be followed by policy, program, and activities that support the innovations at local and national levels.
"We are now in the era of ASEAN Economic Community, an open market where products, services and investments are free to flow according to the ASEAN convention," the minister said.
Therefore, acccording to Nasir, comparative and competitive advantages will determine the winners among ASEAN countries.
A report issued by the World Economic Forum (WEF) 2015-2016 put Indonesias competitiveness at 37th of 140 countries. The position is below Singapore at second, Malaysia at 18th and Thailand at 32nd.
The minister said Indonesia is now at the stage of efficiency-driven economies, where growth is based on the development of more efficient production processes and increased product quality.
It is expected that Indonesia will soon be at innovation-driven economies stage, where companies compete by producing and delivering new and different products and services by using the most sophisticated processes.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2016
