APTISI West Papua Prioritises Lecturers’ Competence and Certification

Manokwari (ANTARA) – The Indonesian Association of Private Universities (APTISI) Region XIV in West Papua Province is prioritising improvements to lecturers’ competence and certification in a bid to raise the quality of higher education and produce more competitive graduates.

APTISI Region XIV West Papua chair Dr Filep Wamafma said in Manokwari on Wednesday that strengthening lecturers’ capacity was important to ensure teaching met education quality standards and addressed the needs of the labour market.

“Improving competence and meeting the requirements to take part in certification are priorities for lecturers,” Filep said.

He said lecturers in West Papua were keen to develop higher education, but faced various challenges, from limited infrastructure to administrative and academic requirements for career progression.

APTISI will provide regular capacity-building training for lecturers, particularly early-career lecturers, to help them apply teaching methods that adapt to developments in science and technology.

“We will provide support so lecturers become more professional and can foster innovation in academic activities, as this is one of the requirements for certification,” he said.

He acknowledged that lecturers’ career development had not progressed optimally because of several obstacles, including a lack of training, limited community service activities and the administrative requirements for academic promotion.

APTISI is committed to widening access to career development and improving the quality of human resources, while also advocating better welfare for lecturers at the 11 private universities across West Papua.

“Not all private universities provide adequate welfare for their teaching staff. This is certainly a concern for me as chair of APTISI West Papua,” Filep said.

He said APTISI would therefore strengthen cooperation with provincial and regency governments in West Papua to secure affirmative policies supporting private higher education institutions.

Local government involvement was essential to improving lecturers’ academic qualifications, competence and welfare in tandem, and thereby raising the quality of higher education in West Papua.

“We hope the government will pay attention to opportunities for lecturers to pursue further studies, so that more teaching staff can attain doctoral and professorial qualifications,” he said.