TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto said that the industrial era 4.0 requires a young generation with creative, adaptive and innovative characteristics. Young people, he said, have an important role in building the national economy.

"We must continue developing characteristics of young people who are creative, adaptive, and innovative, in order for them to be competitive in entering the industrial revolution 4.0 and the digital economy," Airlangga said in an official statement received in Jakarta, Monday, November 15.

The majority of Indonesia's population is Generation Z, people aged 8 to 23. They account for 27.94 percent of the population, and have a high level of digital adoption and knowledge about the financial sector.

Indonesia is estimated to need 9 million digital talents over the next 15 years. In addition, workers with digital skills have the potential to contribute Rp4,434 trillion to the GDP by 2030, which is around 16 percent of total GDP.

"The magnitude of these values must be used for the benefit of the wider community," he said.

Airlangga said that by 2030, Indonesia is projected to have a demographic bonus with a productive workforce reaching 64 percent of the population. Tech-based and digital-based industries are expected to become the new engines of growth that require talented human resources and competitive technopreneurs. In order to obtain optimal benefits from the condition, the potential must be balanced with higher productivity and quality of education.

"The government hopes that this opportunity can be used by young people to optimize creativity, innovation, becoming sources of inspiration and exploring their potentials to improve knowledge and skills," Airlangga Hartarto said.

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