Ministry pushes education as key pillar in national research roadmap

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology has encouraged education to become a strategic component of the National Research Roadmap currently being drafted.

The matter was specifically discussed during a focus group discussion (FGD) on the Review and Validation of the Education Research Roadmap to refine the National Strategic Research Roadmap and Agenda Book.

Director General of Research and Development at the ministry, Fauzan Adziman, in a statement issued here on Saturday, emphasized the National Research Roadmap drafting is not solely centered on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, but also accommodates the scope of social sciences and humanities.

According to him, education has been positioned as one of the social sciences and humanities fields that plays an important role in developing talent, strengthening character, and addressing social challenges within the framework of national development.

"Education is a key in the national talent development and serves as an important foundation for various strategic fields in the National Strategic Research Roadmap and Agenda Book," Adziman stated.

The education component drafting team, led by a representative of the Association of Indonesian Educational Institutions and Education Personnel (ALPTKI) Markus Diantoro, has formulated the field into three main focuses.

The three focuses comprise preparing elementary and secondary education graduates for higher education, improving the readiness of higher education graduates for the labor market, and strengthening access to non-formal education.

Various stakeholders attending the forum also provided important input regarding efforts to strengthen teacher quality, improve literacy and numeracy, and navigate skills in line with industry needs.

Through these refinement efforts, the roadmap is expected to encourage cross-sector collaboration and ensure that research activities contribute directly to strengthening Indonesia’s talent development.