Experts needed for development

PADANG, West Sumatra: The country needs at least 250 researchers in the fields of health, agriculture, plantation, marine, forestry and the environment in a bid to speed up the development process, an expert said.

"Due to a lack of researchers, the country for several years has been unable to solve various problems ... or even unable to find solutions to certain issues," said Pratiwi Soedarmono, a biotechnologist from the University of Indonesia. The Indonesian candidate for NASA during the 1980s spoke at the annual scientific meeting of the Indonesian Association of Biologists, Antara reported.

She said the country only had about 50 medical researchers, with some of them dividing their time between government offices and foreign companies. (edt)