Collaboration Key to Achieving Technological Independence by 2045: Deputy Minister

Deputy Minister of Communication and Digital Affairs Nezar Patria stated that collaboration among stakeholders is key to building a national digital ecosystem to realise Indonesia’s technological independence by 2045. “We have explored eight priorities for digital ecosystem development in Indonesia with a broad spectrum and diverse range, from increasing the added value of the telecommunications industry to improving national logistics cost efficiency,” Nezar said at the Digital Ecosystem Alignment (DEAL) 2026 event in South Jakarta. According to Nezar, Indonesia has significant opportunities in the digital economy, contributing around 40 percent to the ASEAN digital economy. However, the size of the market does not automatically make Indonesia a global technological power. He assessed that the future of the national digital economy is determined by the ability of all stakeholders to build an interconnected ecosystem, spanning infrastructure, talent, industry, and technological innovation. He said digital ecosystem development is an integral part of the Indonesia Digital 2045 strategy. The current phase of development will determine whether Indonesia achieves its strategic goal of technological independence in the future. “The stage we are going through now will determine whether by 2045 we can achieve our national strategic goal of technological independence. Strengthening collaboration is the most important keyword that we must internalise together and how we execute it,” he stated. Nezar also encouraged Indonesia to learn from India’s experience in building its digital economy through strengthening digital public infrastructure, such as the Aadhaar digital identity system and the Unified Payment Interface (UPI). According to him, inclusive digital public infrastructure can drive financial services while serving as a foundation for digital economic growth. Furthermore, Indonesia needs to strengthen its position in the global digital economy supply chain, particularly in the development of artificial intelligence (AI) technology. “We see how, after this ecosystem strength is built, we also need to pay attention to how our national strength can penetrate the global market chain,” Nezar said. He added that Indonesia’s digital economy value is estimated to reach 105 billion US dollars by 2025 and has the potential to increase to 260 billion to 360 billion US dollars in the future. According to him, this potential can only be realised through strong collaboration across the entire national digital economy value chain.