Biotechnology In Indonesia Is Slow In Development

Biotechnology has developed in Indonesia for a long time even the use of biotechnology itself has penetrated into various sectors of daily life, one of which is the food sector. for example the manufacture of cheese, tempeh, oncom, and so forth. However, modern biotechnology only developed in 1985 when the Minister of Education and Culture allows the emergence of the program in Biotechnology such as Agricultural Biotechnology IPB, Bio-health technology at UGM, and Industrial Biotechnology at ITB Bandung.

Although it has been around for a long time in Indonesia, the development of biotechnology in Indonesia itself is relatively slow due to several factors. The first factor is the lack of research funding in the field of biotechnology. Biotechnology research is needed to increase the quantity and quality of products and knowledge about biotechnology. Other factors are low human resources, facilities, and government policies that seem to extend the marketing process of genetic engineering products.

But recently President Joko Widodo appreciated the development of a biotechnology-based industry that produces vaccines with a messenger RNA (mRNA) based technology platform. quoted from President Joko Widodo’s official statement “I very much welcome what PT Etana Biotechnologies Indonesia has done in producing vaccines on the mRNA platform. This is a first in Southeast Asia.”

Furthermore, President Jokowi encourages his staff to support biotechnology-based industries so that they are developed not only for humans but also for animals and plants.

On a separate occasion, the Minister of Health, Budi Gunadi Sadikin explained, world trends in the last 10 years show that medicines sold in the market are biologically based. Therefore, the government through the Ministry of Health encourages the development of medicines based not only on chemistry but also on biology.

“One of the programs is building the biotechnology industry. On August 17, we also launched an applied research center for precision medicine called BGSi. It is also a research center for health biotechnology,” said the Minister of Health.

in conclusion, Biotechnology has many benefits for progress in agriculture, health, and the environment. However, biotechnology in Indonesia has not developed rapidly compared to other Asian countries. Several factors affect that delay biotechnology development including low research funding, human resources, and lack of facilities. Other factors such as culture and religion also influence the development of biotechnology in Indonesia.