The Institute for Research on Economics and Society at the University of Indonesia (LPEM UI) notes that Indonesia is currently facing symptoms of premature deindustrialization. Since 2014, the contribution of the manufacturing sector to Indonesia's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) has averaged only 39.12%, a decrease from the previous period which was recorded at 41.64%.

This decline has an impact on Indonesia's economic growth, which is considered less than optimal, only around 5%. In fact, President Prabowo Subianto targets Indonesia's economic growth to reach 8% in the future. To achieve this target, serious steps are needed to encourage re-industrialization in Indonesia.

This is the background behind Indonesian Engineers Association (PII) raising the theme “Re-Industrialization, Key to Golden Indonesia 2045" at the Inauguration Ceremony PII Central Management for the 2024-2027 period which was held on Monday, January 20 2025, afternoon, at Soehanna Hall, Jakarta.

“Re-industrialization requires a big role from engineers. "PII will continue to collaborate with the government and various parties to play an active role in supporting efforts to grow industry in the country," said Dr. Ir. Ilham Akbar Habibie, MBA, IPU, General Chair of the Indonesian Engineers Association for the period 2024-2027.

One of the important elements in re-industrialization is the existence of professional engineers. Countries that successfully industrialized had significant numbers of engineers. For example, Vietnam has 9,000 engineers per million population, while South Korea has 25,000 engineers per million population. In Indonesia, the number of engineers is currently only around 2,670 per million population. This condition is a major concern for the Indonesian Engineers Association.

"We hope that PII can support the government in increasing the number of Indonesian engineers. "Not only in terms of quantity, but also quality," added Ilham Habibie.

Cross-Generation Collaboration in PII Management 2024-2027

The inauguration ceremony for the Central Board of the Indonesian Engineers Association for the 2024-2027 period was attended by more than 600 engineers, both in person and online, including the general chairs of PII from the previous period. PII management under the leadership of Dr. Ir. Ilham Akbar Habibie involved engineers from various generations.

"We hope that collaboration between experienced engineers and enthusiastic young engineers can make PII move more dynamically, work with PII administrators in the regions, and support industrial development in Indonesia," said Ilham Habibie.

With the spirit of cross-generational collaboration, PII is expected to contribute significantly to encouraging the re-industrialization of Indonesia and increasing the role of engineers as a driving force for industrial progress and the national economy. (***)