A Campus That Builds A Research Center On The Hill Of Algorithms And The Challenges In The Future

Silicon Valley in the United States. (Photo- Unsplash)

YOGYAKARTA - Chief Executive of PT Kiniku Bintang Raya, Budiman Sudjatmiko admitted that the Algorithm Hill project in Sukabumi, West Java (West Java) has a location far from universities and colleges, but several campuses will be involved in the research development center.

The former activist in 1998 said that he would offer 25 km of land to each university that wanted to join and carry out development in the Algorithm Hill research center.

It should be noted that there are now four campuses that have approved the construction of Algorithm Hill in Sukabumi. The research area which is predicted to be the Silicon Valley of Indonesia involves the following campuses.

1. Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB)

2. Padjadjaran University (UNPAD)

3. Bogor Agricultural Institute (IPB)

4. Foreign universities that are not named

Challenges of Algorithm Hill Development in Sukabumi

There are challenges in the development of Algorithm Hill in Indonesia. The Institute of Development of Economics and Finance (INDEF) explains some of these challenges as follows.

1. R&D in Indonesia is Still Low

Reporting from Antara, Head of INDEF's Center of Innovation and Digital Economy, Nailul Huda explained that the Research and Development (R&D) ecosystem in Indonesia is still very low.

Nailul explained that the proportion of R&D funds to GDP in total was still small or only 0.24 percent. According to him, the proportion of R&D funds to GDP generated by the private business sector is still low, which only contributes 0.017 percent.

Low R&D then has an impact on high-technology manufacturing exports in Indonesia, which are still low.

It should be noted, the World Bank in 2021 recorded that high-tech manufacturing exports in Indonesia were only 8.1 percent, and far behind neighboring countries such as Malaysia (51.85%), Thailand (23.01%), and Vietnam (40, 44%).

"In fact, to build a place specifically for building technology, a high-tech industry is needed which is mushrooming in Indonesia," explained Nailul.

2. Lack of Innovation

Furthermore, Nailul explained that the lack of innovation in Indonesia is a special challenge. It should be noted that Indonesia's ICOR is at 6.7, or the bottom four when compared to ASEAN countries.

In addition, the lack of innovation is also caused by policies that encourage R&D such as tax allowances that have not had an effective impact

"This means that the capital that enters the country cannot be used optimally to generate economic growth or it can be said that the cost of innovation is getting more expensive," explained Nailul.

3. Lack of competent human resources

Based on UNESCO data, the number of researchers in Indonesia is still very low, namely 216 people out of 1 million population. Ironically, the composition of the proportion of the population who are able to operate computers proficiently is only 3.5 percent.

Then based on a survey of the Indonesian Fintech Association (AFTECH) there is a talent gap between the supply and demand for labor in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector specifically for data, analysis, and programming jobs in the fintech industry.

The lack of adequate human resources has made around 36 percent of fintech companies employ foreign workers.

4. Equalities in the Digital Sector

Digital inequality in Indonesia is proven when the ICT sector is only enjoyed by certain groups and is only centered on the island of Java (Jakarta and Yogyakarta) as the center.

Based on data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), as many as 50 percent of households in urban areas have enjoyed internet services, but in villages only 26.56 percent.

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