In order to increase the capacity of developing an integrated knowledge system based on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) at Universitas Indonesia (UI), UI, together with the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) and the Directorate General of Higher Education, Research and Technology, Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia (Ditjen Diktiristek Kemendikbudristek RI) agreed to establish a partnership. “Our partnership with KOICA is really crucial and important, not only for UI, but also for Indonesia,” said Prof. Dr. Ir. Dedi Priadi, DEA, UI Vice Rector for Human Resources and Assets.
“We hope there will be a strong impact from the cooperation between the two countries to contribute to a friendlier world. From this agreement, we look forward to a positive outcome,” he added.
Representing KOICA, Jeong Yun-gil stated that the MOOCS system has an important role in developing the capacity of UI lecturers and students, especially during the pandemic. This project is designed to strengthen and improve the quality of human resources in Indonesia.
As in Korea, human resource development is not the only key to achieving economic development, but is one of the various development agendas to move the country forward. “We have a great responsibility to carry out this project, Jeong said.
He added, “KOICA shares its experience on human resource development in Korea to Indonesia and Indonesia is responsible to carry out this project for the sake of human resource development in Indonesia. KOICA team and I promise to support and make full efforts for this project. Ministry of Education and Culture and UI can focus on this project. We believe this project will get the expected result, which is to build quality resources,” he said.
On that occasion, Prof. Nizam expressed his highest appreciation to KOICA for continuing to cooperate with Indonesia, especially in the field of human resource development through education. According to Prof. Nizam, the cooperation built by KOICA, the Indonesian government, UI, especially in the development of MOOCS, is the right step to build the strength of Indonesia’s human resources to achieve future bonuses.
During the three years of the pandemic, people finally realized the importance of technology as a medium to deliver education. “We believe that through collaboration and cooperation, many problems can be solved and many achievements made faster. In this era of development, another important thing is that everything is related to humanity. So, it’s not just about technology, but also about humanity. For that, I appreciate UI through FHum for running this project. Technology and humanity must go side by side in the 4.0 era. We fully support the cooperation built by KOICA and UI and hope that this cooperation will continue in the long run,” said Prof. Nizam.
The cooperation between UI and its partners was outlined in a cooperation agreement, which was signed on Monday (29/1), at the Diktiristek Building, Jakarta. In addition to Prof. Dedi, Plt. Director General of Higher Education, Research and Technology, Prof. Ir. Nizam, M.Sc., DIC, Ph.D., IPU, Asean Eng.; The Country Director of The Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) Indonesia, Mr. Jeong Yungil; Dean of the Faculty of Humanities (FIB) UI, Dr. Bondan Kanumoyoso, M.Hum.; Director of Cooperation Dr. Toto Pranoto, S.E,, M.M.; Manager of Cooperation and Ventures FHum UI, Eva Latifah, Ph.D.; and Program Manager for KOICA Indonesia, Mr. Nikka Sasongko are present at the event.
Through the signing of the Record of Discussion (RoD), the ICT-based Integrated Knowledge System Capacity Building project at UI was implemented with several objectives. One of the project’s goals is to build a high-tech eco-friendly building at UI’s Faculty of Humanities (FHum) that will host the Connectivity Hub (CHub).
The building at FIB UI will be equipped with smart classrooms and a remote module development studio for Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCS). Thus, the development of the MOOCS platform and its learning modules also encourages and promotes the business and industry sectors to take a greater role in supporting the university’s innovative research and community empowerment programs by using the available C-Hub infrastructure.
According to Prof. Dedi, a well-supported, developed, and implemented C-Hub will be able to break down barriers in coordination and communication, and can synergize with stakeholders to achieve a common goal, namely improving the quality and capacity of human resources in Indonesia. In fact, networking and cooperation in the non-government industry sector is still limited.
There are many non-governmental organizations and social organizations that have good ideas, visions and missions, but limited resources and capacity to realize them. Therefore, through the Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCS) program designed by UI, KOICA, and Kemdikbudristek along with the construction of the C-hub, there will be unlimited learning media that can be accessed by anyone to realize the quality of superior human resources (HR).
Through MOOCS, UI is committed to building strategies to solve problems in society. The long-term education learning modules are co-designed and co-produced and the university will manage and organize them. Professors and lecturers can also work with social actors, industry practitioners, professionals and communities to create and disseminate knowledge in the form of data, information and practical skills that are accessible to the public. Therefore, C-Hub not only has the capacity as a MOOCS production center, but also provides various training programs, workshops, consulting services, and co-working spaces by utilizing technology according to the needs of the community.
The cooperation between UI and KOICA is the beginning of the development of national education. The concept developed in this cooperation is to build infrastructure and operations that allow members of the academic community and the community to learn interactively by utilizing digital technology.
“This cooperation aims to empower the potential and capacity for development in universities, government, industry, and society. Supported by the application of advanced information and communication technology, MOOCS will help stakeholders in Indonesia and Korea to solve problems related to unequal access to knowledge,” said Dr. Bondan in his speech.
