Jakarta, 6 August 2020 - The Ministry of Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions and Transmigration of the Republic of Indonesia (the Ministry), in collaboration with PT. Telekomunikasi Indonesia International (Telin) and Swiss German University (SGU), held a virtual webinar titled "Village Development in the Digital Age". The webinar featured the Director General for the Development of Disadvantaged Areas from the Ministry, Samsul Widodo, as the keynote speaker. Representing Telin as a global telecommunications company was the CEO of Telin, Sukardi Silalahi, who gave recommendations for the digitalization process of villages in Indonesia, specifically with regard to advancing local villages. Subsequently the webinar featured the Chairman of SGU Community Service, Tabligh Permana and Camat (Head) of Silahisabung Sub-district.
This activity is part of the Universitas Membangun Desa (UMD), or Village Building University movement, an inspirational platform which is a continuation of a previous initiative by Telin and SGU during which Sukardi Silalahi shared ideas with residents of Dairi Regency, North Sumatra. This sharing session was also attended by the Regent of Dairi, Eddy Keleng Ate Berutu, as well as residents of Dairi and the surrounding area. Telkom Group has collaborated to build a Digital Center in the Silahisabung sub-district by building a Digital Center there through Telkomsel and Telin.
In his briefing, Samsul Widodo stated, "Village digitization is currently being leveraged for the Village Information System as mandated by the Village Law No. 6 of 2014, however this concept is also widely used to promote village products, Bumdes, and all areas of the economy as well as basic services. Villages are now actively collaborating with various parties to showcase their abilities and appreciating the work of the community which has developed significantly towards greater prosperity and the continued advancement of the country. This is the moment at which we must show that the villages are taking advantage of various existing technologies to work with sincerity and dedication."
"As global conditions become increasingly disruptive and the world moves toward digital, it is time for us to optimize the strength of local villages through digital. From morning until we sleep, we are always on our cell phones, a trend we can leverage. Digital farming through IoT has been successfully carried out in other countries, now is the time for villages to do the same, let's collaborate between companies and universities by digitizing all the way from upstream to downstream," Sukardi continued
In accelerating this initiative, the support of educational institutions is important given that universities serve as a resource for high quality human capital with individuals who are able to contribute at a practical level, as well as draw on the available literature so that these competencies can be leveraged to advance villages in Indonesia.
Tabligh, representing SGU as the educational partner, elaborated in his role as a representative of academia, "The development of digital infrastructure in the village is important, as is its usage to optimize the potential of the village and solve problems in the village. So universities have a role to play to assess and develop village potential in collaboration with local governments and companies as the key to developing economically self-sufficient villages in the digital era."
The webinar was also attended by the Head of Silahisabung Sub-district, Hamaska Presdi Ardianto Silalahi as a representative from Silahisabung sub-district, who shared testimonials related to the Digital Center facilitated by Telkomsel. “Silahisabungan is one of areas in Indonesia that produces shallots. The digital center is now used by residents, in particular shallot farmers, to explore farming techniques and sell agricultural products digitally.”
In the ongoing collaboration between the Ministry, Telin, and SGU, each institution draws on its expertise to make villages in Indonesia digitally literate and leverage digitization in producing and selling local commodities.
For more information:
Telin:
Melani Moechtar
Ministry of Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration of the Republic of Indonesia:
Endah Nurdiana Mastuhu
SGU:
Yosman Bustaman