USAID to Inject $1m Into Neglected Research Sector

Jakarta Globe, Ismira Lutfia, July 15, 2011

A lack of opportunities in Indonesia has prompted about two
million local scientists to seek employment abroad. 
(Antara Photo/Anis Efizudin) 

The Indonesian scientific community has welcomed a $1.1 million research grant from the United States as a much-needed shot in the arm, but scientists say more domestic support is needed.

The funding, to be channeled through a new USAID project dubbed Partnerships to Enhance Engagement in Research, was announced during a 10-day visit by Bruce Alberts, a special US science envoy to Muslim-majority countries, which ended on Tuesday.

The initial funding will be made available for Indonesian researchers to participate in US National Science Foundation research projects with American scientists.

Walter North, director of USAID in Indonesia, said the grant would finance joint research projects between Indonesian and US scientists, which the foundation previously did not fund.

“We would like to encourage more collaboration between US and Indonesian scientists through this financing,” he said.

North added that the grant was expected to support up to 50 joint research projects over the next two or three years.

He said there were many ways to make the funding available, including through the Indonesian-American Kavli Frontiers of Sciences Symposium, organized by the Indonesian Academy of Sciences (AIPI), the US National Academy of Sciences and the US Department of State.

The symposium, which Alberts attended, brought together 70 leading young Indonesian and American scientists last weekend in Bogor to discuss opportunities in their fields. The scientists’ presentations highlighted major research challenges, methodologies and limitations to progress at the frontiers of various disciplines.

In addition to affording Indonesian and American scientists the chance to share their research, the symposium provided an important way for researchers to develop stronger relationships in the interests of future collaboration.

“It was one of the ways to make researchers eligible for the research grants,” North said. “We want to help Indonesia to become a leader in science, as science can help to overcome the challenges that Indonesia faces.”

Ibnu Maryanto, a researcher from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), welcomed the news, citing a dearth of domestic funding for research and development. However, he also warned that research findings could end up benefiting the United States more than Indonesia.

“From a research and development point of view, it’s a good opportunity to enhance our knowledge, but we must also keep in mind that there is no such thing as free [research] funding,” he said on Friday.

Ibnu said developed countries were increasingly looking to tropical countries for research and development projects, largely because of the abundance and availability of biodiversity resources.

“There are plenty of biodiversity resources here that they can develop for various industries, such as pharmaceuticals, biofuels and even biological weapons,” said Ibnu, who is one of the country’s leading bat experts, or chiropterologist.

Despite his cautiousness, Ibnu has benefited from National Science Foundation research projects, having received a research grant this year for a five-year project on transboundary bat migration within Southeast Asia, in which he cooperated with scientists from around the region and the United States.

Ibnu also criticized the administration of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for showing little interest in cultivating a culture of research and development in the country.

He said the sector was robust during the rule of President Suharto, when B.J. Habibie, who would later succeed the strongman, served as minister of research and technology.

“There was a clear correlation between a good R&D environment and an increase in exports,” he said.

Data from the World Bank and Unesco, the UN’s scientific organization, in 2006 showed that Indonesia’s R&D funding was less than $1 billion, or 0.1 percent of its gross domestic product. That put Indonesia far behind neighboring countries such as Thailand, which spent 0.6 percent of its GDP on research, Malaysia (0.7 percent) and Singapore (2.2 percent).

The decline in the research and development sector in Indonesia has led to an exodus of scientists seeking better opportunities abroad, where many have made their mark on the global stage.

According to the National Education Ministry, there are roughly two million Indonesian scientists working as professionals, researchers and academics around the world.

Alberts, who met with various stakeholders in the Indonesian scientific community during his visit, urged Indonesian government officials to invest more resources in basic science research.