Attend the 6th Japan-Indonesia Joint Working Group at Unhas Makassar, Rector of Udayana University: An Important Momentum to Expand International Collaboration Network

Makassar – The 6th Japan-Indonesia Joint Working Group (JWG) was held from July 10–12, 2025, at Hasanuddin University, Makassar. This forum served as a strategic platform to strengthen research collaboration and industrial downstreaming between higher education institutions from Japan and Indonesia.

The 6th JWG was attended by 33 institutions from Japan, including 30 universities, the Japanese Ambassador to Indonesia, representatives from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology of Japan (MEXT), and the Consulate General of Japan in Makassar. Meanwhile, the Indonesian delegation included representatives from the Council of Rectors of Indonesian State Universities (MRPTNI), the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology, and the Ministry of Industry.

The forum focused on enhancing collaboration in research and industrial downstreaming between researchers from Japanese and Indonesian universities. One of the key outcomes of this forum was the appointment of Kobe University, Japan, as the host for the 7th JWG in 2027.

The Rector of Udayana University, Prof. Ir. I Ketut Sudarsana, S.T., Ph.D, stated that participating in the JWG is a crucial momentum to expand international cooperation networks, particularly in producing research that has a direct impact on industry and society.

“Udayana University currently has University-to-University partnerships with 41 universities in Japan. However, going forward, we need to encourage the formation of research consortia with several Japanese universities in the same field so that the outcomes are more focused and have broader impact,” he said.