Collaboration among universities, the government, industry, and regulators is key to accelerating health innovations while strengthening national pharmaceutical independence. Deputy Minister of Health Dr. Benjamin Paulus stated that the government is encouraging universities to serve not only as educational institutions, but also as research and innovation hubs capable of producing strategic health products.
“Every faculty of medicine must not only be an educational institution, but also an innovation center that produces health products. We need research that can be translated into real solutions,” Benjamin said in a press release on Sunday, July 19, 2026. He cited the development of a tuberculosis (TB) vaccine as one of the national priorities. Given that Indonesia still has one of the highest TB burdens in the world, developing a national vaccine requires strong synergy among the government, universities, the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), industry, and regulators.
In addition to treatment, strengthening screening, contact tracing, preventive therapy, and vaccine development must go hand in hand. For this reason, Benjamin said, Universitas Padjadjaran was asked to lead the research and development of the tuberculosis vaccine under the Quick Win Program (PHTC) for TB eradication in Indonesia. The TB Quick Win Program is expected to reduce TB cases by up to 50% by 2029.
Head of the Indonesian Food and Drug Authority (BPOM), Prof. Taruna Ikrar, emphasized that strengthening the innovation ecosystem is a crucial step toward achieving Indonesia’s pharmaceutical independence, given that the country still relies on imported raw materials for medicines and vaccines. “Medicine and vaccine independence is part of national resilience. Therefore, BPOM fully supports homegrown vaccine innovations, from the development process and clinical trials to accelerated licensing,” he stated.
