"The budget efficiency policy does not necessarily dampen our research capacity," the ministry's Director General of Research and Development, Fauzan Adziman, affirmed in Jakarta on Tuesday.
He remarked that his institution would also mobilize a budget to research on transportation, health, maritime affairs, the green economy, and the green economy, and other issues related to the president's Asta Cita missions.
On that note, Adziman mentioned the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program as a research topic of priority linked to these missions.
"We can direct our research activities towards supporting the MBG program," he stated.
He then raised the possibility of the government reallocating budgets initially allotted for other initiatives to fund research activities, including the education budget managed by the Finance Ministry's Endowment Fund for Education Agency (LPDP).
Additionally, he said the government might look to involve the private sector in funding research on downstreaming efforts to support domestic industries.
"We aim to further reduce imports by substituting foreign goods with those produced domestically. To this end, we need to earmark budgets for relevant research and development initiatives," he stated.
In view of this, the R&D director general emphasized the importance of coordination and collaboration among all relevant stakeholders, including the central and regional governments, as well as industry players.
"We seek to foster cooperation, as we cannot afford to let a low budget stop us from researching," he stressed.
Originally, the Higher Education, Science, and Technology Ministry held Rp1.9 trillion (US$116 million) in research budget. Discussions to determine the revised budget following efficiency policy are still underway within the ministry.
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Translator: Sean F, Tegar Nurfitra
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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