Share the curriculum and syllabus, library collections online, lecturers and lectures online to advance together and to help all university students throughout Indonesia to also progress
Jakarta (ANTARA) - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has appealed to Indonesian universities to foster the spirit of mutual help, particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"I invite FRI, the Indonesian Rector Forum, to function as more than just a communication forum. The FRI should be developed into a forum of mutual care, a forum of sharing, notably those, who are capable of helping those who are not and the haves to help the poor," the head of state remarked at the Bogor Presidential Palace, Bogor, West Java, on Saturday.

"I understand that the issue of tertiary education is very complex, I understand. I realize that FRI has thousands of members, with varied abilities. There are universities competing at the global level, but there are also universities facing shortages of lecturers, having poor library facilities, and lacking classrooms. I am cognizant of this reality," the president remarked.

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Hence, Jokowi has called on universities to share their experiences online.

"Share the curriculum and syllabus, library collections online, lecturers and lectures online to advance together and to help all university students throughout Indonesia to also progress. I believe that the FRI can do this," Jokowi noted in his opening remarks at an online conference of FRI.

In addition to collaborating with fellow universities, President Jokowi also called on universities to actively collaborate with industries, including industrial estates located in proximity to their respective areas.

"If there is an industrial area nearby, collaborate with it, open a faculty or a department or a study program whose scientific characteristic is close to the industrial estate to enable cooperation in research and technology and the development of pure science," he remarked.

President Jokowi urged universities to be proactive and prompt in forging such cooperation and collaboration.

"Let us capitalize on the current demographic bonuses to help superior youngsters to progress ahead in life and to develop an advanced Indonesia," the president affirmed.

The head of state is upbeat about Indonesia emerging as a high-income nation when it marks the 100th anniversary of independence in 2045.

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Translator: Desca LN, Fardah
Editor: Sri Haryati
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