Fajarasia.id – Indonesia’s Deputy Minister for Higher Education, Science, and Technology (Wamendiktisaintek), Stella Christie, has confirmed that the national research budget has not been cut. On the contrary, it has increased dramatically by 218 percent within the first year of President Prabowo Subianto’s administration.
Speaking after attending the third day of the Indonesian Higher Education Summit (KPPTI) at Universitas Negeri Surabaya (Unesa), East Java, on Friday (Nov 21), Stella dismissed reports of budget reductions.
“There has not been a single rupiah cut from the research budget. Claims of efficiency measures reducing research funds are simply not true. In fact, the research budget has risen by 218 percent,” she asserted.
Stella emphasized that the surge in funding reflects a new paradigm of Impactful Research, designed to foster healthy competition among academics. She stressed that research should not be measured solely by publication numbers but recognized as a strategic force for national progress.
“We are building a new paradigm—Diktisaintek Berdampak. There will be no economic growth without technological innovation,” she said.
The Deputy Minister underlined that research outcomes must align with national priorities set by President Prabowo, including food security, energy, water management, and industrial downstreaming. “Believe that your publications are real contributions to Indonesia’s economic growth,” she told academics.
In addition to the budget increase, Stella revealed ongoing efforts to secure direct research incentives from the state budget (APBN) for individual researchers. Such incentives, she argued, are crucial to boosting innovation and competitiveness.
“Researchers must be able to receive direct incentives for their work. We have not yet achieved this fully, but we are fighting for it. Without direct incentives, researchers’ motivation and contributions will not reach their full potential,” she explained.
With the significant rise in research funding, the government hopes to accelerate innovation that addresses national challenges while strengthening Indonesia’s competitiveness on the global stage.****
