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.
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