UNAIR NEWS – Various problems occurred within the Indonesian Ministry of Communication and Information (Menkominfo), from BTS corruption case to the inauguration of Budi Arie Setiadi as Minister of Communication and Informatics, have increased public awareness of the importance of communication and information sector. The sector can shape people’s views and knowledge for the better.
To UNAIR NEWS on July 24, 2023, Universitas Airlangga (UNAIR) Technology expert, Dr Maryamah Skom, conveyed the importance of communication and information. Of course, this sector will become the backbone for developing an advanced, inclusive, and informative society.
“This sector can facilitate all aspects of human life in education, business, banking, government and other sectors,” she said.
Accelerating economic sector
Furthermore, it has become the main pillar of economic empowerment, such as creative industries, technology startups, and even small businesses. Thus, the information technology sector continues to play a role as a driving force of the modern economy.
She also said the development of this sector will create new jobs and opportunities to reduce the unemployment rate and encourage sustainable economic growth, especially when the Covid-19 pandemic hit in 2020 as people were aware of this importance.
“All sectors of life are turning online–based. Sectors that did not make adjustments from offline to online often had to shut down. With technology, work productivity also increases,” added the UNAIR Data Science Technology lecturer.
Develop community awareness
She hoped that by seeing the importance of this sector, Indonesia would be more aggressive in maximizing the technology industry, starting with the development of a massive digital infrastructure; in the future, all Indonesian citizens will be able to enjoy the same advanced technology and people can understand the complexity of global problems and contribute to finding solutions together.
Besides, the government must also provide sufficient technological education to the community. If it does not do it, the intensified development will not align with the community’s readiness. One of the most essential aspects is public awareness of the security of personal data.
“Regarding information data security, we must be more careful when using public wifi. Do not send sensitive data such as logins to m-banking, and do not access unknown apk-based files,” she said. (*)
Author: Afrizal Naufal Ghani
Editor: Nuri Hermawan
