Indonesia is on the cusp of a massive wave of digital transformation. Research predicts that the value of the country’s digital economy will increase to US$130 billion by 2025.
But that rapid growth also brings challenges when it comes to skilling. Indonesia’s digital transformation will require 9 million more digital skilled workers by 2030, equivalent to 600,000 workers per year.
At Microsoft, we believe economic growth should be inclusive – every person, organization, and community should have the opportunity to participate and thrive in the country’s growing digital economy. We also believe that strengthening digital literacy and skills and connecting people to jobs where they can be used, is key to helping Indonesia’s transformation accelerate.
We’ve operated in Indonesia since 1995. Today, through our #BerdayakanIndonesia initiative, we are more committed than ever to playing our part in helping the country realize its digital vision. Below, I’ve rounded up some of the ways we are increasing access to digital skills and providing upskilling pathways for those looking to advance their careers.
Digital literacy training for all
In January 2023, Microsoft launched Skills for Jobs Indonesia in a strategic partnership with the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs. The program aims to provide free digital literacy, skills, and job preparation training to at least 1 million Indonesians by 2024. It helps participants obtain globally recognized Microsoft certifications that propel their digital careers forward.
In January 2023, the program provided training to 385 trainers from the Ministry of Manpower of Indonesia. This group included representatives from organisations like BLK (Job Training Centers), UPTD (Regional Technical Implementation Unit), and BBPPV (Vocational and Productivity Centers) across Indonesia.
Building a digital skills community
Other projects include our SATU Karya initiative, set up to support digitalization across industry sectors and help create an integrated digital ecosystem in Indonesia. We, for example, are working together with state postal service, Pos Indonesia, to improve the digital skills of over 14,000 employees.
Under this program, Microsoft launched SATU Talenta, a LinkedIn community connecting Indonesian digital workers with Microsoft certification and industry leaders. The community brings together Microsoft-certified individuals and recruiting company partners so they can explore job opportunities. Since its launch in November 2022, SATU Talenta has connected more than 600 Microsoft-certified talents in Indonesia with seven hiring partners. As of January 2023, the community has also opened 20 job opportunities.
Empowering women in MSMEs
Another vital step in boosting Indonesia’s digital economy is to ensure equal opportunities for women in business. By supporting diversity and gender inclusivity, Microsoft is reaching more participants in groups that are typically marginalized, thus supporting the Indonesian government’s target of digitizing 30 million MSMEs by 2030.
Microsoft is committed to supporting female entrepreneurship, especially among Indonesian Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). For example, we worked with Indonesian entrepreneur ecosystem builder, KUMPUL, to launch Perempuan Bijak Berusaha, an online entrepreneurship and digital literacy program for women in MSMEs.
Partnering with local education institutions
We’re also seeking to support the digital transformation of educational institutions across Indonesia. That way, teachers and students alike can gain experience adapting to new technologies and acquire new digital skills.
A great example of this is BINUS University, where Microsoft technology has been used to build an interactive laboratory in the cloud for students to access education from anywhere. Nasima Islamic School also made full use of Microsoft for Education to help teachers develop digital literacy skills across Office 365 software, OneNote, and Microsoft Teams through free online training. We’ve also worked to create advanced digital learning experiences at institutions like Universitas Indonesia, the Sinjai Regional Office of Education, Telkom University, and the Bandung Institute of Technology.
At the same time, we’re supporting skills development in emerging industries like gaming, which became a billion-dollar industry in Indonesia as of 2021. Working with the Indonesia Cyber Education Institute (ICE-I), we’ve created a Micro-Credential Game Developer Program that supports students in gaining the experience and skills to participate in this growing industry.
Empowering Indonesia’s digital-ready workforce
Improving access to digital skills will accelerate the participation of all Indonesians in the country’s economic success. We believe it’s when people are equipped with the skills and knowledge to adapt to an increasingly digital economy that they are empowered to help shape and build the country’s future.
Microsoft is proud to support this vision. We’re excited to continue working with Indonesia’s leading organizations to help them drive inclusive economic growth.
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