Deputy Minister Calls on Academics to Become Problem Solvers in Transmigration Areas
Jakarta (ANTARA) — Deputy Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology (Wamendiktisaintek) Fauzan has affirmed that universities must transform into part of the development ecosystem in order to become problem solvers supporting the development of transmigration areas.
“Universities must become problem solvers for the challenges faced by the nation. Today, a great campus is one that is able to give greater meaning to people’s lives,” he said at the farewell ceremony for the Patriot Expedition Team in Jakarta on Wednesday.
Deputy Minister Fauzan said the strength of nearly ten million students and hundreds of thousands of lecturers must be harnessed to broaden the impact of the three pillars of higher education (tri dharma perguruan tinggi).
To that end, the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology (Kemdiktisaintek) is driving a paradigm shift in higher education, from campuses working independently to campuses building collaborative networks, and from an institutional-achievement orientation towards an orientation towards real impact for society.
As an implementation of this policy, Fauzan explained, several Higher Education Consortiums (Konsorsium Perguruan Tinggi, KPT) have already been established in the regions, collaborating with local stakeholders such as regional governments and the business and industrial community to address local problems as part of national solutions.
For example, Kemdiktisaintek has developed a higher education consortium in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) to support the acceleration of stunting reduction through thematic community service programmes (KKN Tematik), in Central Sulawesi for tuberculosis (TB) management, and in Bondowoso through assistance with organic farming development.
According to Fauzan, a similar approach can be applied to support the development of transmigration areas by identifying specific problems in each region as the basis for formulating science-based solutions.
“Universities must become part of the solution to the problems that exist in society. In a given transmigration area, a campus can identify the challenges present at that location. When more specific study and more effective treatment are required, the university can ‘press the button’ of the consortium that exists in that region,” said Deputy Minister Fauzan.
In closing his remarks, he expressed appreciation to the Ministry of Transmigration for organising the farewell ceremony for the Patriot Expedition Team. According to Deputy Minister Fauzan, the event further opens opportunities for universities to contribute directly to the development of transmigration areas.
Data from the Higher Education Database (PDDikti) as of October 2025 and Statistics Indonesia (BPS) 2024 show that Indonesia has 4,416 higher education institutions, 303,067 lecturers, and 9,967,487 students. This potential is a strategic asset that can support the acceleration of development, including through science-based assistance in transmigration areas.