On 10-11 July 2018, the Ministry of National Development Planning/National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) with support from the Australian Government through the Knowledge Sector Initiative (KSI) organized the Indonesia Development Forum (IDF) 2018. IDF is a platform for national dialogue that brings together leaders in government, civil society, academia, and the private sector to discuss solutions to Indonesia’s key development challenges.

The SMERU Research Institute played an active role in the event, namely:

On the first day, Dr. Asep Suryahadi (Director of SMERU) hosted the INSPIRE VI: Delivering Basic Services to Reduce Regional Disparity, which presented four speakers, namely Indah Putri Indriani (Regent of North Luwu, South Sulawesi), Dr. Ir. Subandi, MSc (Deputy Minister for Development of Human Resources, Communities, and Culture, National Development Planning Agency), Kamaruddin Batubara (President Director, Koperasi Syariah Benteng Mikro Indonesia), and Nani Zulminarni (Founder and Director of PEKKA). The discussion in this session revolved around the strategies carried out by the institutions represented by each speaker to address the underlying causes of regional disparity in Indonesia including issues of connectivity and accessibility, access to basic services, local governance, and use of local natural resources for development.

On the second day, a number of SMERU researchers spoke at several sessions. Goldy Fariz Dharmawan presented the findings of his study in a presentation titled Synchronizing the Job Market: The Analysis of the Vocational Schools Role Amidst Developing Labour Market in Indonesia in the IMAGINE CfP SESSION I: Regional Growth Centres: What Works Best? Then at the INNOVATE: MARKETPLACE OF IDEAS AND INNOVATIONS session, two SMERU researchers, namely Dinar Dwi Prasetyo and Gema Satria, presented the results of each of their study conducted with the SMERU research team. Dinar, in collaboration with Silvia Devina (Yayasan Plan International Indonesia), spoke on Menuju Pemerataan Akses terhadap Air dan Sanitasi yang Lebih Sensitif terhadap Kesetaraan Gender & Inklusi Sosial [Toward Equitable Access to Water and Sanitation that are More Sensitive to Gender & Social Inclusion Equality] in SPOT F: Delivering Basic Services to Reduce Regional Disparity, while Gema Satria presented Menelusuri Aliran Belanja Desa [Tracing the Flow of Village Fund] in SPOT L: Smarter Funding for Better Outcomes. In addition, Daniel Suryadarma (Deputy Team Leader of the RISE Programme in Indonesia; SMERU) presented research findings entitled Education and Policymaking and Learning Outcomes in Indonesia's Districts at the same session at SPOT K and L: Addressing Disparities in Education Quality in Indonesia.

Toward the closing of the IDF 2018, Prof. Bambang P.S. Brodjonegoro (Minister of National Development Planning/Head of Bappenas) launched the Inclusive Economic Development Index (IPEI) created by the Ministry of National Development Planning/Bappenas. SMERU has actively participated as a technical partner in the process of developing the index. The Head of Bappenas symbolically pushed the launch button, accompanied by Amalia Adininggar Widyasanti, ST, MSi, M.Eng. Ph.D (Senior Adviser to the Minister for Economic and Financing Synergies), and Dr. Asep Suryahadi (Director of The SMERU Research Institute); The IPEI’s profile video played following the launch.

Another proud moment for SMERU was when Gema Satria won the award as the best presenter in the INNOVATE: MARKETPLACE OF IDEAS AND INNOVATIONS. The award was delivered directly by the Minister of National Development Planning/Head of Bappenas.

We would like to congratulate the Ministry of National Development Planning/Bappenas and the Australian Embassy through Knowledge Sector Initiative for a successful event. We are proud to be able to actively participate in the event. See you at # IDF2019.