The Directorate General of Resource and Information Technology Devices Resources, Ministry of Communication and Information Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, Dr. Ir. Ismail, M.T., who is also an alumnus of Engineering Physics Institut Teknologi Bandung, held a presentation on the Digital Transformation and 5G Development in Indonesia on Wednesday (26/1/2022) during the "Knowledge Sharing BK Teknik Fisika, Persatuan Insinyur Indonesia" webinar.

Dr. Ismail explained the current internet condition of Indonesia. Currently, around 202.6 million Indonesian are familiar with and are using the internet, or around 73.7% of the total population of Indonesia. Moreover, he also explained the current condition of Indonesia's digital economy. It is projected that the value of all e-commerce transactions in Indonesia will reach 530 trillion rupiahs. In addition to that, the digital economic activity in Indonesia has the potential to generate 26 million jobs from the MSMEs sectors.

Some of the new activities that emerge from the development of digital space, which is also in line with the post-pandemic lifestyle, are telemedicine, virtual learning, virtual conference, online groceries shopping, and the increase of 4.0 industrial automation. To bring Indonesia towards the future, the President mentioned several points.

The first point is an order for both the central and regional government to speed up their standardization process of the digital ecosystem. The second point is a request for the need for significant change in the licensing process of digital business to give new business actors more opportunities to thrive.

In addition to that, Dr. Ismail also explained various pillars or prioritized programs for achieving digital transformation. "The first one is the Digital Infrastructure Pillar, then the Government Pillar, Digital Economy Pillar, and at last Digital Society Pillar," he explained.

However, to successfully erect those pillars, several things need to be improved and optimized. The first thing is the energy sector, specifically the need for electricity to be evenly available in all corners of Indonesia. "Because telecommunication will not exist if there is no electricity," said Dr. Ishmael.

The second thing is about digital content and application, specifically the need for data security and content safety. Indonesia also seeks to launch a new satellite that will finally give internet access to some remote regions in Indonesia.

Another step that Indonesia wants to take is to develop the 5G technology in Indonesia. One of the issues that have been highlighted is the 5G frequency spectrum. 5G wireless technology requires a very wide frequency spectrum range. In addition to that, the high cost of 5G internet service is still being discussed because it may be unaffordable for the majority of the public.

Currently, Indonesia has taken action in realizing the implementation of 5G technology. A total of 14 5G trial tests have been conducted from 2017 to 2021. Several sectors that had the chance to try this new technology are education and industry. A more advanced trial and an FSS Co-Existence test in 3.5 GHz are already planned for 2022.

Reporter: Yoel Enrico Meiliano (Postharvest Engineering, 2020)
Translator: Favian Aldilla R (Civil Engineering, 2019)