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View all search resultsAdvanced therapy: How Indonesia can escape the middle-income trap
To escape the middle-income trap, Indonesia must transition from a passive market into a global producer of breakthrough medical innovations.
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Employees process phytopharmaceuticals (fitofarmaka) Oct. 16, 2025, at the Center for Innovation and Research of Natural Medicines, Dexa Laboratories of Biomolecular Sciences (DLBS), in Cikarang, Bekasi, West Java. (Antara/Muzdaffar Fauzan)
I
ndonesia is currently at a critical crossroads in both healthcare development and innovation-driven economic growth. On one hand, the need for advanced therapies is becoming increasingly urgent because of the rising prevalence of chronic and complex diseases. On the other hand, the economic opportunities within the global biopharmaceutical industry are growing exponentially.
In this context, the development of advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs), including gene, cell and ribonucleic acid (RNA)-based therapies, is no longer a futuristic option, but a strategic necessity.
Globally, the direction of this transformation is clear. Biological products have become the primary engine of growth in the pharmaceutical industry, expanding more than threefold compared to small-molecule drugs.
By the end of 2025, more than 4,000 gene, cell and RNA-based therapy pipelines were in development worldwide, with approximately 150 products already receiving marketing authorization. The therapeutic landscape is shifting from symptomatic approaches toward curative and precision-based therapies.
As the head of the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM), I do not view this role merely as running a supervisory bureaucracy. I stand at the intersection of three vital functions: first, as a regulator ensuring efficacy, safety and quality; second, as an academic bridging science and policy; and third, as an active participant in the broader strategy for national health-economic development.
From this perspective, drug and food regulation is not solely oriented toward public protection. It is also an instrument for encouraging innovation and strengthening national pharmaceutical independence.
The fundamental question for the next two decades is simple yet crucial: Will Indonesia emerge as a player in global therapeutic innovation or remain merely a market?
