Unair, UB, and Unhas Now Join the Patriot Expedition

JAKARTA - The Patriot Expedition programme has already demonstrated its prestige among the academic community. At the initial launch stage of the Patriot Expedition, the Ministry of Transmigration only partnered with seven renowned national universities, including Universitas Indonesia (UI), IPB University, Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB), Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS), Universitas Diponegoro (Undip), Universitas Padjadjaran (Unpad), and Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM). Meanwhile, this year, three new universities will join the Patriot Expedition programme, namely Universitas Airlangga (Unair), Universitas Brawijaya (UB), and Universitas Hasanuddin (Unhas). On the other hand, the Patriot Scholarship programme for master’s and doctoral levels, which was planned to be launched this year, has reportedly been postponed. This postponement is due to fiscal limitations and economic conditions. “We can state that it is very likely this scholarship programme will be postponed and not implemented this year, considering the budget we currently have will be directly allocated and implemented for the immediate needs of the people,” said Iftitah. Transmigration area development in 2026 will be focused on the Papua region. Iftitah stated that this is part of the government’s strategic steps to accelerate development and improve the welfare of communities in eastern Indonesia. The programme is expected not only to target physical outputs but also sustainable social impacts encompassing economic, educational, health, and social harmony aspects. Collaboration between the government, higher education institutions, and the community is key to inclusive development in Papua. In that Land of the Bird of Paradise, there will be 10 transmigration areas to be developed. “There are eight clusters, one of which is poverty alleviation, job provision, and also increasing community income. We will focus on the 10 transmigration areas in Papua,” explained Iftitah. Nevertheless, the Ministry of Transmigration will continue to develop transmigration areas in central and western Indonesia. To support this, the Ministry of Transmigration has allocated 35 percent of its budget for the revitalisation of basic infrastructure in 154 transmigration areas. In 2026, the Ministry of Transmigration will receive an indicative allocation of Rp 1.902 trillion. “Therefore, the Patriot Expedition will not involve much research this year, but rather applications for people’s needs such as basic infrastructure and derivatives of the National Priority Work Programme (PKPN),” clarified Iftitah.