T

he public services sector, especially health care, is being encouraged to tap into the internet of things (IoT) to help them reach out to more people with less hassle, as the government aims to connect more people to the internet across the archipelago.

The IoT technology in the country is still lacking with old equipment still being used and spread thin in areas outside big cities, hindering patients’ access to efficient healthcare, despite the fact that receiving a diagnosis and treatment advice for certain illnesses, for instance, may not require face time with doctors as it can all be done through mobile applications.

The IoT technology can address a number of potential problems such as limited access to medical staff in rural areas, as machine mobility and easier diagnosis and treatment are possible through smartphone apps or app-connected machines, said Bekraf director of ICT Infrastructure Muhammad Neil El Himam.

“What we are seeing is that in health care, many hospitals and community health centers [Puskesmas] are not equipped with technology that could improve their services. To make up for that, they can utilize IoT devices, like smartphone apps,” Himam said.

In sectors such as public insurance Bekraf is promoting a more efficient digital fund distribution mechanism for Social Security Management Agency (BPJS) payments to alleviate possible backlogging and delays in disbursement.

However, workers in the healthcare and insurance sectors need to receive further training to increase their understanding of IoT technology, so that they can educate their patients about the technology.

The IoT can serve the rising number of internet users in Indonesia, which is expected to reach 215 million by 2020, making it the fourth-largest globally, according to a recent joint report from Google and Temasek. The country is currently the world’s fifth-largest with 100 million users.

Communications and Information Minister Rudiantara noted that the IoT business potential in Indonesia was tremendous given the statistics showing that the country has an increasing digital literacy rate and ever-growing penetration of smartphones.

The minister based his explanation on data from the International Data Corporation (IDC) that shows that the Asia-Pacific region is poised to have 8.6 billion IoT-connected devices by 2020.

“As such, Indonesia is expected to become a major player in the biggest IoT growth in Southeast Asia,” he said in an official statement at the Asia IoT Business Platform in Jakarta.

Several large-scale national projects, including the long-delayed Palapa Ring project were referred to as possible agents in IoT development. The Palapa Ring project aims to lay down over 11,000 kilometers of fiber optic cable, which would span the entire archipelago, providing the nation with faster internet.

Other projects that the ministry referred to is the plan to continually farm new frequencies with telecom operators so that their customers can gradually shift to the 4G mobile network. Indonesia’s four main
operators only initiated their 4G mobile services in November last year.

Marina Kacaribu, vice president of digital service enterprise at local mobile phone operator Telkomsel, said that if developing IoT hardware proved challenging, it could be made up through software such as mobile apps, thereby putting to use creative talent as well.