Indonesia: We do not want to be just consumers of technology

President Joko Widodo (ANTARA)

 Jakarta: The power of improved quality of human resources would enable Indonesia to actualize its vision to be a developed country, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has said.

“Through such determination, the 2020 fiscal policy is drawn up with the theme ‘A State Budget to Accelerate Competitiveness through Innovation and Improved Quality of Human Resources’,” the president told the members of parliament as he pledged to focus on improving the quality of Indonesia’s human resources amid fierce competition among nations in the digital era, national news agency ANTARA reported.

His seriousness is obvious in the government’s statement on the bill on the state budget for the 2020 fiscal year and its financial note that he delivered at the House of Representatives (DPR) plenary session, the news agency said.

Challenges are formidable for Jokowi who will again lead the world’s fourth most populous country until 2024 following his victory in this year’s presidential elections.

They include saving children with stunted growth, improving the quality of its human resources, boosting the quality of higher education and being part of global innovation networks.

Vice President Jusuf Kalla last month stressed that Indonesians should not get trapped in a condition that makes them mere consumers of the world’s rapid technological developments.

“We do not want to be just consumers of technology. In its place, we must also be part of innovation. Technology indicates an advancement, but it is also a challenge, as it changes human life and behavior,” Kalla said, quoted by ANTARA.