Foreign Minister Sugiono: APEC Has The Power To Lead Human-Cented Innovation Model

Foreign Minister Sugiono attended the 2025 APEC Ministerial Meeting. (Source: APEC 2025 Korea)

JAKARTA - Indonesian Foreign Minister Sugiono said the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum (APEC) has the power to lead the human-centered innovation model, prompting the group to minimize the digital gap as a collective priority.

Speaking at the APEC Ministerial Meeting in Gyeongju, South Korea Thursday, Foreign Minister Sugiono emphasized the importance of utilizing digital cooperation to build an innovative, sustainable and inclusive Asia-Pacific region.

Foreign Minister Sugiono said the Asia-Pacific region was a global growth and innovation engine.

"Technological revolution, demographic transition, and the rise of the creative economy can present great opportunities, but this can only be enjoyed evenly through collective cooperation," he said.

"With the economic power, demographic scale, and technology we have, APEC has the power to lead a human-centered innovation model, where technology empowers humans, not replaces it," said Foreign Minister Sugiono in a statement from the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Thursday, October 30.

Furthermore, Foreign Minister Sugiono reminded that digital progress has not been felt evenly, with almost half of the area still not connected to the internet.

According to him, the digital gap is a critical challenge, especially in the context of the demographic reality of various regions.

"While some economies face the challenges of an aging population, countries like Indonesia have great opportunities with more than 60 percent of the population under the age of 40. To really take advantage of this demographic advantage, connectivity is key," explained the Indonesian Foreign Minister.

For this reason, he continued, Indonesia encourages APEC to reduce digital inequality as a collective priority. Among them are infrastructure investment, capacity building and literacy, as well as encouraging the participation of women and MSMEs in the digital economy.

In this meeting, Foreign Minister Sugiono also highlighted the creative economy as a strategic driver for inclusive and sustainable growth.

"In Indonesia, the creative sector contributes around 90 billion US dollars to the economy and creates 26.5 million jobs," said Foreign Minister Sugiono.

"Indonesia is ready to build an innovative and prosperous Asia-Pacific region, where humans remain the main driving force so as to be able to direct technological advances towards prosperity and sustainability for all," said Foreign Minister Sugiono, affirming Indonesia's commitment to working with all APEC members.