Indonesia

Political framework for scientific and technological cooperation

According to the STC agreement, the declared priority areas of bilateral cooperation are marine research and technology, energy research and technology, aerospace research and technology, geosciences, social sciences and the humanities, all scientific fields and technologies that can help drive forward industrial development, and scientific information and documentation activities.

The general aim is to incorporate industry partners in the collaborations, especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs, in accordance with the EU's definition). One of the ways in which Indonesia is pursuing this objective of creating closer links between research and commercial application is the establishment of Business & Technology Centers (BTC). The BMBF supports this endeavour by funding workshops and observation visits in Germany as well as by conducting on-site consultations.

Basis and key areas of cooperation

On the basis of the STC agreement, the BMBF cooperates with Indonesia with the help of an inter-ministerial committee. Four joint steering committees coordinate the collaboration, which is classified into three thematic areas: marine research and geosciences, biotechnology, the tsunami early warning system and Geothermal resources.

Marine research and geosciences
One key reason for the quick response to the tsunami was Germany and Indonesia's long-standing cooperation in a joint steering committee for marine research and geosciences (EOR - Earth and Ocean Research). Past experiences in bilateral river and coastal zone management projects and the joint use of research vessels play a very important role in this.

The joint steering committee looks after numerous projects for sustainable resource management under the heading "Science for the Protection of Indonesian Coastal Marine Ecosystems" (SPICE). They receive financial support under the BMBF's funding programmes. The Center for Tropical Marine Ecology in Bremen undertakes important activities on behalf of the committee (workshops, summer schools, scientist exchanges, etc). Further information on SPICE can be found at http://www.bmbf.de/de/4852.php , http://www.fz-juelich.de/ptj/wtz/indonesien

Tsunami Early Warning System
In spring 2005, a steering committee for bilateral cooperation in the establishment of a tsunami early warning system constituted itself. The basis for this collaboration with Indonesia is the Joint Declaration between Germany and Indonesia of 14 March 2005.

As part of its development reconstruction aid to the affected region, the Federal Government provided €45 million for the development of the tsunami early warning system. The German-Indonesian system forms part - the main part, in fact - of the overall concept of the Tsunami Early Warning System for the Indian Ocean, whose construction is being coordinated by UNESCO/IOC (Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission).

Different scientific organizations cooperate closely under the leadership of the Helmholtz Association of National Research Centres, represented by the GeoForschungsZentrum Potsdam (National Research Centre for Geosciences), the German Aerospace Center (DLR), the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI), the Leibniz Institute of Marine Sciences (IFM-GEOMAR), the Research Centre Geesthacht (GKSS), the German Marine Research Consortium (KDM), the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR) the Society for Technical Cooperation (GTZ), and the United Nations University in Bonn (UNU).

Biotechnology
The bilateral steering committee for biotechnology ("SC IG-Biotech") gives top priority to projects that include both research institutions and businesses from both countries. The key areas of cooperation are currently plant biotechnology and plant breeding and the biotechnological processing of industrial wastewater and other waste materials, including the processing of glycerol as a by-product of palm oil production. New collaborations include molecular farming for the production of vaccines and a '2+2' cooperation project for the development of a genotype-specific HCV diagnosis chip.

Highlights of bilateral cooperation

Tsunami Early Warning System
Two years after the Joint Declaration on the establishment of a tsunami early warning system was signed, a number of significant goals have already been reached. Some central components of the system are up and running: The central communication unit has been operating since 2006. The first 10 seismometer stations have been constructed and networked with other stations in the region (Thailand, Malaysia, Australia). The German evaluation system SeiComp 3 has been integrated and already provides seismic early warnings within 4 to 5 minutes (before the tsunami disaster, this took at least 60 minutes). Further stations, including two tide gauges and three GPS stations, have been constructed. After an initial test phase, the first two GPS buoys have been technologically optimized. The Indonesian Meteorological and Geophysical Agency (BMG) has erected a new building to house the warning centre. The start-up phase is over, and the centre is now being jointly operated by Germany and Indonesia. During this phase, Indonesian staff is being trained, individual components are being optimized and a financing plan is being developed together with Indonesia to ensure that the system can continue to be operated in the future. The system is to be handed over to Indonesia completely in mid 2010.

As part of the GEOTECHNOLOGIES special programme, the BMBF is also providing €1.3 million in funding for a project that focuses on the "last mile" (transmission of the warning signal to private homes and hotels). In close cooperation with the GITEWS project, researchers working on a collaborative project between several scientific establishments and small and medium-sized enterprises are using hydro-dynamic models to simulate the event of a tsunami entering the Indonesian city of Padang. In cooperation with local authorities, evacuation plans are being developed based on the results of this simulation as well as on population structures, topographical characteristics, etc.

Capacity building activities focus on training personnel for the early warning system and, at academic level, on advising Indonesian authorities at both municipal and national level. A programme for PhD students was set up in Germany to enable Indonesian graduates to take part in the GITEWS project. In late 2007, a law was passed to define responsibilities in the event of disaster. The GITEWS project was involved in this, too. Municipal facilities for use in disaster situations were developed for three pilot regions (Sumatra, Java and Bali). This work in particular should be extended to other regions. It is to be continued as part of German-Indonesian development cooperation.

Collaborative project on karst waters
This project focuses on opening up and making use of underground karst waters in the province of Yogyakarta. The most important project in the field of environmental research and technology, which is being carried out under the leadership of the universities of Karlsruhe and Yogyakarta, has the aim of enabling a sustainable use of subterranean rivers in a sporadically arid region in Java. The technologies adapted for this project can also be used in karst regions with subterranean rivers in other parts of the world and therefore have great market potential.