Geography Study Club, Faculty of Geography Universitas Gadjah Mada, has just hosted a National Seminar entitled Region Sustainable Development, Challenges and Opportunities for Developing Region. The Seminar was part of series of events of Geo-Environment Student Challenge 2017 that was run on Sunday (5/11) in the Merapi Auditorium of Faculty of Geography. It presented keynote speakers, Sudirman Said, M.B.A. (former Energy and Mineral Resources Minister) and Prof. Ir. Wimpie Agoeng Noegroho A, MSCE, Ph.D. (Deputy Head of National Technology Development Agency).
Sudirman delivered his speech entitled Sustaining Development in Energy and Mineral Resources. According to Sudirman, the enemy of sustainable development was pragmatism, short term vision, populist policy, and rent economic practices.
According to Sudirman, there were challenges towards achieving Indonesia 2045. He opined Indonesia had to shift from growth patterns that were mobilised by resources to productivity and innovation based growth patterns.
He explained further the keys to do this were equal growth across Indonesia, infrastructure and connectivity that support growth as well as innovation and technology that encourage resource utilisation. The last key is human resource that is reliable for global competition, also food security and energy.
“But all of those aspects need another prerequisite, which is bureaucracy reform, law enactment, and corruption eradication,” said Sudirman.
He also explained that reforms need understanding of three main things: people, structure, and culture. In his opinion, credibilty and integrity would build competition and networks. “Keep your integrity and honesty as these are the key to the future,” he said.