Higher Education Minister Emphasises Universities' Role in Agricultural Value Chain Development

Jakarta — Indonesia’s Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology (Mendiktisaintek) Brian Yuliarto has emphasised the crucial role of universities in advancing agricultural value chain development across the country.

Speaking in Jakarta on Friday, he stressed the importance of collaboration between higher education institutions, the government, and industry in driving research development and value chain advancement, particularly within the agricultural sector.

“We excel in research, but once we move into value chain development, we must collaborate with industry. We are very pleased that today universities, working alongside BRIN, are directly targeting commodities where self-sufficiency is not yet fully achieved or remains dependent on external parties,” he said.

Yuliarto noted that universities possess strengths in research, whilst the industrial sector plays a vital role in translating innovation into implementation and market deployment.

“Innovation alone is insufficient without the involvement of government regulators. The objective is to translate campus research into policy form, given that budgets are held by government,” he explained.

The head of BRIN (Indonesian Research and Innovation Agency), Arif Satria, affirmed that BRIN functions as a “Research Kitchen” supporting the research needs of various ministries and agencies.

He stated that BRIN has held meetings with ministries and agencies to identify the research themes required for national development. Additionally, BRIN has developed a research roadmap jointly with the Ministry of Higher Education.

“Without a shared roadmap between the Ministry of Higher Education and BRIN, we risk research efforts overlapping and failing to concentrate on solving actual problems and developing solutions,” he said.

The Ministry of Higher Education, along with the Ministry of Agriculture, BRIN, and several universities, signed a joint agreement on Thursday, 12 March, at the Ministry of Agriculture building in Jakarta to strengthen research and innovation collaboration in support of national agricultural development.

This collaboration is expected to generate technological breakthroughs and flagship products capable of increasing agricultural productivity, reinforcing national food security, and promoting Indonesia’s self-reliance and global competitiveness whilst delivering tangible benefits to the people and national development.