VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The Indonesian Elections Commission, KPU, has reiterated the commitment of the elections of transparent, integrity and fair. The commission hoped the debate of the vice president candidate could be reference for the citizen to make choices on Wednesday April 17.  Head of the commission KPU, Arif Budiman said before the  debate, Sunday March 17 in Jakarta.

The third round of debate of two Indonesian vice presidential candidates, broadcast and live streamed by the country's national TV channels on Sunday evening, highlighted educational, employment, health, as well as social and cultural issues.

In terms of educational issues, the debate's panelists challenged both Ma'ruf Amin and Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno with a question on Indonesia's budget in enabling research to emerge as the world's big five in 2045.

Both Amin and Uno promised to pay a serious attention to the availability of sufficient research funds though these two vice presidential candidates seemed to have a different approach in enhancing Indonesia's research and innovation programs.

Sandiaga Uno who was requested by the debate's moderator to speak first echoed the Prabowo Subianto-Sandiaga Uno pair's pledge to prioritize innovation and research programs by emphasizing the importance of a link and match approach.

The link and match approach is so significant that the research outcomes meet the demands of private sectors to help create more job opportunities for the people. However, many research projects in Indonesia have yet to get linked to the needs of business sector.

Therefore, in strengthening the link and match, Uno said Indonesia's reputable universities' research projects need to be linked to the needs and demands of private sectors.

Under the leadership of Prabowo Subianto-Sandiaga Uno, the government would also consolidate and synergize the innovation and research programs. It would also provide the private sectors successfully applying their research and development activities with fiscal and non-fiscal incentives.

"I have ever managed the research and development funds, I do know that we have so many capable and creative young people," Uno revealed his strong belief that Indonesia would be able to emerge as a well-developed country in the future.

Meanwhile, Ma'ruf Amin vowed to consolidate and synergize the research funds allocated to various ministries and government agencies under a national research agency.

Amin also revealed that the Joko Widodo-Ma'ruf Amin pair would also develop a research endowment fund and empower the implementation of a national research roadmap to strengthen Indonesia's research and development activities. (kpu and ant)