Singapore, 16 July 2021 ⎯  The National University of Singapore (NUS) is collaborating with two of Indonesia’s top universities – Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM), and Universitas Indonesia (UI) – to foster and cultivate innovation between Singapore and Indonesia.

Under these agreements, NUS, through its entrepreneurial arm NUS Enterprise, will be offering scholarships and support for Indonesian students from UGM, and UI to attend its Master of Science in Venture Creation in Singapore, as well as to jointly establish a venture creation programme in Indonesia.

NUS Deputy President (Innovation and Enterprise) Professor Freddy Boey signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Rector of UGM, and Vice Rector of UI, during a virtual ceremony on 16 July 2021 at InnovFest, the official start-up event of Asia Tech x Singapore (ATxSG).

“NUS Enterprise has continued to cultivate a vibrant and innovative entrepreneurial ecosystem in the cities of Jakarta and Yogyakarta, and to support a two-way flow of talent, technologies and start-ups with Singapore through collaborations with local incubators and educational institutions,” said Prof Boey.

NUS Enterprise has been involved in the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem in Indonesia since 2017 through programmes such as BLOCK71, NUS Overseas Colleges, and the NUS Enterprise Summer Programme in Entrepreneurship. To date, NUS Enterprise has supported more than 250 start-ups from Singapore and Indonesia, providing incubation support and access to international markets through its BLOCK71 global network.

“With this new joint initiative, we hope to continue to bridge talent and technology between Singapore and Indonesia to mould the next wave of start-up founders with deep tech ventures,” shared Prof Boey.

Professor Ir. Nizam, Director General of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, shared during his opening remarks that the MOU is significant not only for the cooperation between the neighbouring universities. More importantly, the collaboration will develop a technology ecosystem through the partnerships between academia and businesses and accelerate innovation and entrepreneurship via the campuses. “Today I am very grateful to see the signing of the MOU between NUS, UGM, and UI to accelerate entrepreneurship and the business of start-ups. I believe this initiative will strengthen the collaboration and friendships between Singapore and Indonesian students. The future of ASEAN depends very much on our success in nurturing creative and productive citizens, in line with the needs of the very dynamic future.”

Professor Ir. Panut Mulyono, Rector of UGM remarked that UGM is very excited to formalise this agreement, given the long-standing friendship among the universities. “This is not merely a piece of paper to formalise a relation. Instead, it is a reminder that we really have to work hard to transform our ideas into reality. This MOU will pave the way for many opportunities in academic collaboration. And it should not stop there. We want to see more opportunities in the form of entrepreneurs, start-ups and enterprises created by our alumni.”

Dr. Nurtami, Vice Rector of Research and Innovation, UI, commented that UI aims to build their students’ competency in several fields so that they are well-equipped when they graduate. “This collaboration is the first step in the planned synergy and collaboration. This collaboration between universities will certainly be mutually beneficial, both in research, teaching and community service. It will provide our students with the opportunities to improve their personal skills, creativity, ethics, innovation and entrepreneurship.”

Following the signing, NUS, UGM, and UI will work together closely to plan the launch of their joint initiatives within the next 12 months. Indonesian students from these universities under the scholarship will attend NUS’ Master of Science in Venture Creation in Singapore starting from 2022.

For media enquiries, please contact:

Kathleen Tan Marketing & Communications NUS Enterprise DID: +65 9819 7595 Email: kathleen@nus.edu.sg   Dr. I Made Andi Arsana Office of International Affairs Universitas Gadjah Mada Email: head-oia@ugm.ac.id   Dra. Amelita Lusia, M.Si. CPR Head of Public Relations and Public Information Bureau Universitas Indonesia Media Contact: Mariana Sumanti Email: humas-ui@ui.ac.id DID: +6281515000002

 About National University of Singapore (NUS)

The National University of Singapore (NUS) is Singapore’s flagship university, which offers a global approach to education, research and entrepreneurship, with a focus on Asian perspectives and expertise. We have 17 faculties across three campuses in Singapore, with more than 40,000 students from 100 countries enriching our vibrant and diverse campus community. We have also established our NUS Overseas Colleges programme in more than 15 cities around the world.

Our multidisciplinary and real-world approach to education, research and entrepreneurship enables us to work closely with industry, governments and academia to address crucial and complex issues relevant to Asia and the world. Researchers in our faculties, 30 university-level research institutes, research centres of excellence and corporate labs focus on themes that include energy; environmental and urban sustainability; treatment and prevention of diseases; active ageing; advanced materials; risk management and resilience of financial systems; Asian studies; and Smart Nation capabilities such as artificial intelligence, data science, operations research and cybersecurity.

For more information on NUS, please visit www.nus.edu.sg.

About NUS Enterprise

NUS Enterprise, the entrepreneurial arm of NUS, plays a pivotal role in advancing innovation and entrepreneurship at NUS and beyond. It actively promotes entrepreneurship and cultivates global mind-sets and talents through the synergies of experiential entrepreneurial education, active industry partnerships, holistic entrepreneurship support and catalytic entrepreneurship outreach. Its initiatives and global connections support a range of entrepreneurial journeys and foster ecosystem building in new markets. These initiatives augment and complement the University’s academic programmes and act as a unique bridge to industry well beyond Singapore’s shores.

For more information, please visit https://enterprise.nus.edu.sg.

About Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM)

Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) is the first public university established after the independence of Indonesia, 19 December 1949. Located in the heart of Yogyakarta where the traditions of Javanese culture are highly valued, UGM provides a harmonious and comfortable learning environment for its students. Since the beginning, UGM has become a role model and pioneer of higher education in Indonesia. UGM shows a remarkable achievement by becoming the No.1 University in Indonesia, ranks as the 70^th best university in Asia, and ranks as the 254^th best university in the world based on QS World University Rankings 2021.

As a leading Indonesian university, UGM aims to promote excellence in educational activities, research, and community service with the interest of the Indonesian society and to participate in Indonesian socio-cultural development. Therefore, UGM equips the student with the knowledge and skills to succeed in their chosen career in a competitive global market. UGM offers various education programs (18 faculties, 2 schools and 265 study programs) equipped with professional teaching staffs with an outstanding educational and research background. As an effort to realize the needs of the nation, UGM also provides 23 studies and research centers in various scientific studies. This is intended to accommodate the diverse interest of the UGM community in research activities.

Students admitted to UGM come from 34 provinces and 514 cities in Indonesia, overseas countries, and regions in the world. The cultural diversity created has been integrated in harmony as UGM’s identity. In addition, the alumni networks of UGM are also becoming one of the strongest and largest in Indonesia. Its alumni have become the leaders in Indonesian and global society for decades.

For more information of UGM, please visit www.ugm.ac.id

About Universitas Indonesia (UI)

Universitas Indonesia is a comprehensive state university, located in two campuses; Jakarta and Depok. The university is a home for more than 47,000 students studying in undergraduate, master, and doctorate degrees. Universitas Indonesia offers 62 undegraduate programs, 72 master programs, and 37 doctorate programs. The university consists of 14 faculties, 2 graduate schools and 1 vocational program that offers a wide range of vocational studies.

Being one of the oldest universities in Indonesia, Universitas Indonesia has a long-standing experience in academic, research and community engagement throughout the years of its establishment. Excellence research, publications, patents and innovations are enhanced through 65 research centers. The university puts resources in developing students‟ creativity, talents and entrepreneurial skills, resulting in more than 30 tenants of business incubations at the university level.

Universitas Indonesia‟s internationalization strategy started with mutual collaboration with universities worldwide. Currently the university maintains more than 240 partnerships with universities worldwide covering various models of cooperation, such as joint-degree, student exchange, short course program, internships, joint-research, joint-publication, jointsupervision and capacity building among other activities. Universitas Indonesia is also an active member of 15 international higher education consortiums and associations, which contributes to a stronger network for international mobility.

For more information of UI, please visit www.ui.ac.id