Supporting Indonesia’s next steps in industrial digitalisation

Cambridge Industrial Innovation Policy (CIIP), in collaboration with the UNIDO Subregional Office in Indonesia and Indonesia’s Ministry of Industry (Kementerian Perindustrian Republik Indonesia), has delivered a series of activities to support industrial innovation policymaking and Indonesia’s ongoing digital transformation.

The collaboration began in Jakarta on 10 August 2026 with a focus group discussion, ‘Next Steps in Indonesia’s Digitalization Journey: Shaping the Future of PIDI 4.0’.  The session brought together more than 50 stakeholders from government, academia and the private sector to explore the opportunities and challenges associated with digitalisation, the future needs of Indonesian industry, and how PIDI 4.0 can evolve to support the country’s industrial digital transformation.

Through interactive discussions and CIIP’s mapping approach, participants shared their experiences, identified key challenges and explored practical opportunities to strengthen PIDI 4.0’s capabilities and services. Priorities emerging from the discussions included strengthening human resources and digital skills, accelerating the adoption of digital technologies and AI, enhancing advisory and support services for SMEs, and strengthening industrial resilience amid evolving global supply chains.

The insights gathered will help build the evidence base for future industrial innovation and competitiveness policies in Indonesia, while identifying opportunities to further strengthen PIDI 4.0’s role in supporting industrial digitalisation.

Following the Jakarta discussions, CIIP and UNIDO delivered a two-day ‘Introduction to Industrial Innovation Policy’ capacity-building programme in Bandung. Bringing together policymakers and industry stakeholders, including colleagues from across Indonesia’s Ministry of Industry, the programme was designed to strengthen understanding of modern industrial and innovation policy and the capabilities needed to develop effective responses to industrial transformation.

The programme combined international perspectives with practical policy tools, covering industrial innovation systems, digital manufacturing, artificial intelligence and digitalisation, and policy design. Through discussions and group exercises, participants shared experiences, applied policy concepts and explored practical approaches to developing effective, future-ready industrial policies.

Together, the activities in Jakarta and Bandung combined stakeholder engagement and evidence gathering with practical capacity building.

 

As Indonesia continues its digitalisation journey, strengthening institutional capabilities and evidence-based policymaking will be important to enhance industrial competitiveness, accelerate innovation, and prepare industries for future technological and economic change.

 

Dr Carlos López-Gómez, Head of Policy, Cambridge Indsutrial Innovation Policy

This work forms part of a wider project supported by Open Society Foundations through which CIIP is collaborating with governments in Mexico and Indonesia to strengthen the design and implementation of green industrial strategies.