Xinhua News Agency, Jakarta, October 14th. Exclusive interview｜Hope to further deepen cooperation with China’s industry, academia and research institutes - Interview with Brian, Minister of Higher Education and Science and Technology of Indonesia
Xinhua News Agency reporter Cao Kai
In an exclusive interview with a reporter from Xinhua News Agency on the 13th, Indonesian Minister of Higher Education and Science and Technology Brian Iuliarto said that cooperation between Indonesia and China in the fields of vocational education, higher education and science and technology maintains a strong momentum. Indonesia hopes to further deepen industry-university-research cooperation with Chinese institutions and enterprises to improve the quality of talent training in the country and help the country's industrialization and economic transformation.
Brian said that currently many Indonesian vocational colleges have established close industry-university-research cooperation with Chinese universities and enterprises. This "school-enterprise cooperation" model provides targeted ability improvement training for students in Indonesian vocational colleges. Currently, the industrial and educational cooperation between Indonesia and China focuses on key areas such as food security, energy security, semiconductors, and resource deep processing.
The 2026 World Vocational and Technical Education Development Conference will be held in Tianjin, China. Brian expressed the hope that by signing a memorandum of understanding on cooperation with the Chinese education department, cooperation projects between Indonesian vocational schools and Chinese universities and enterprises will be further increased, so that the skill level of Indonesian students can meet Chinese industrial standards.
"Chinese industry is moving towards internationalization, which means that when we meet Chinese standards, we can also meet world standards." Brian said.
Brian spoke highly of China's leading position in the field of technological innovation. He said that China is at the forefront of new technologies, and cooperation with Chinese universities and enterprises is a wise choice for Indonesia to keep up with global technology trends.
In terms of talent training mechanism, Brian said that Indonesia advocates the establishment of a balanced mechanism of tripartite collaboration among "government, industry and universities", that is, the government is responsible for formulating policy guidance, enterprises promote industrial implementation and technology application, and universities closely follow government policies and market demand to conduct scientific research and cultivate applicable talents. At present, many Chinese companies have provided pragmatic support by donating advanced equipment to Indonesian universities, building joint laboratories, and conducting joint talent training.
Brian said that in the future, the Indonesian Ministry of Higher Education and Science and Technology hopes to further expand dual degree and joint training programs with China, send more Indonesian teachers and students to China for further study, and invite well-known Chinese professors to serve as visiting professors in Indonesian universities.
Brian believes that achieving rapid economic growth must rely on high-quality development of science and technology. Indonesia has rich natural resources and broad market potential, and China has advanced technology and knowledge reserves. The two parties will use joint scientific research by universities as the entry point to accurately match industry needs and achieve mutual benefit, win-win results, and common development.
When talking about iconic bilateral cooperation projects such as the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway, Brian said that the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway fully demonstrates the role of high and new technology in driving national development. Indonesia looks forward to continuing to work closely with China to promote the growth of more emerging industries in Indonesia.
