The Minister of Cooperatives and Small and Medium Enterprises affirmed that the Indonesian government is prepared to partner with universities and business incubators from the Netherlands to bolster local agriculture startups. The minister announced plans for government collaboration with Wageningen University, renowned globally for its emphasis on healthy food and living environments. This partnership aims to support Indonesian agriculture startups by leveraging the university’s Startlife Agrifoodtech Accelerator, which has nurtured over 400 startups and forged 40 international partnership networks.
Additionally, the minister mentioned the government’s intention to collaborate with UtrechtCE, the business incubator affiliated with Utrecht University, and DotSlash Utrecht, another Dutch business incubator, to share insights on establishing sustainable and influential enterprises and facilitating global transitions. The agriculture sector has consistently been a critical driver of Indonesia’s gross domestic product (GDP), contributing 12.4% to the nation’s GDP in 2022.
The minister stressed the necessity for Indonesia to digitalize its agriculture sector to facilitate the advancement of its agricultural startup companies. Referring to the 2020 Agritech Report, the minister highlighted that as of 2019, only 4.5 million Indonesian farmers, equivalent to 13.4% of the total, had taken advantage of internet accessibility. With Indonesia’s online grocery market projected to reach USD 6 billion by 2025, positioning it among Southeast Asia’s fastest-growing countries, the minister underscored the importance of increasing this figure.
(Source: ANTARA News)
