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Engineering a way out of the skills gap between Indonesia and Australia
Over the next three to 10 years Indonesia will continue to have a deficit of structural engineers, network engineers, data engineers and project managers for specific construction projects, such as tunnel construction.
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A newly opened stretch of toll road is seen in this file photo.
T
he late biochemistry professor at Boston University and science fiction writer, Isaac Asimov, once quipped, “Science can amuse and fascinate us all, but it is engineering that changes the world.”
The potential for engineering to change the world has been enhanced by a new Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA) between Australia and Indonesia. Signed on June 30 by Engineers Australia and the Institution of Engineers Indonesia (PII), and part of the Indonesia-Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, the new MRA will support, for the first time ever, the exchange of skills between Indonesia and Australia to build mutual engineering capacity.
The MRA developed from a series of discussions and exchanges of experience between the two peak bodies over the past 1.5 years. These discussions improved the understanding of each country’s assessment of qualifications, independent practice, registration and credentialing for engineers.
The resulting MRA is a major achievement that would not have been possible without some commonalities in qualifications and assessment standards across the two countries.
The MRA is therefore a testament to the fact that the qualifications and credentials of Indonesian engineers are on a par with Australia. It opens up a new opportunity for Indonesia to leverage its abundant human resources to expand its services exports.
And the timing could not be more perfect. Both Indonesia and Australia are facing a skills shortage, especially for roles with greater technical specializations, such as engineering.
In a 2021 discussion paper on engineering skills, Infrastructure Australia predicted that by next year demand for engineering skills in Australia would be 48 percent higher than supply. Aircraft maintenance, civil, electrical, geotechnical and mechanical engineering are all currently in shortage, with strong continued future demand predicted.
