Deputy Minister of Home Affairs: Regional Innovation is Key to Escaping the 'Middle Income Trap'
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Deputy Minister of Home Affairs (Wamendagri) Bima Arya Sugiarto emphasised that the institutionalisation of an innovation ecosystem at the regional level is an absolute requirement for Indonesia to escape the middle-income trap and become a developed country by 2045.
“Our collective task is to build an innovation ecosystem. Regional leaders may change, regents may retire, governors may complete their terms, but innovation must become part of the institutional framework or a well-established innovation ecosystem. When we talk about an innovation ecosystem, it includes research, regulations, institutionalisation, actors, and funding,” said Bima in a statement in Jakarta on Wednesday.
This was conveyed by Bima at the launch of the Regional Competitiveness Index (IDSD) 2025, focusing on “Strengthening Regional Governance to Encourage Sustainable and Inclusive Competitiveness” in Jakarta.
Bima said that structured and sustainable innovation is key to achieving the target of 8 percent economic growth while also optimising the demographic dividend.
He expressed optimism that, despite the fact that many regions have limited fiscal capacity, strengthening the innovation ecosystem can create new growth opportunities and drive regional progress.
Bima regretted that innovation is sometimes only carried out to win awards without paying attention to the sustainability of the program.
For this reason, he asked regional governments to go beyond conventional collaboration patterns and switch to a co-creation approach, where all stakeholders are involved from the planning stage to implementation.
He then encouraged the establishment of “Regional Innovation Hubs” as a space for universities, communities, Regional Research and Innovation Agencies (BRIDA), and related departments to create real solutions for the community.
“Innovation is not a gimmick. Innovation is focused on solutions. Innovation must have added value. Innovation must be integrated into the system, not just a superficial addition. Innovation provides benefits,” he said.
As a concrete step, Bima proposed a number of breakthroughs that can be implemented by all parties. These efforts include building blended finance to fund regional research, fast-track technology adoption, and making innovation a key performance indicator for civil servants.
He hopes that BRIDA and the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) can play an active role as a driving force in strengthening the research ecosystem in each regional government organisation (OPD).
Institutionalised innovation is a growth engine that must not be extinguished even when leadership changes. Bima reminded regional leaders to use various indices, including the IDSD, as a real policy stimulus, not just an administrative burden.