JAKARTA, Oct 16 (Bernama-ANTARA) -- Indonesia's Health Ministry has launched the Indonesia Clinical Research Centre (INACRC) to enhance the national research system. The initiative aims to position Indonesia as a leading hub for clinical research in Southeast Asia, reported ANTARA news agency.
Deputy Health Minister Dante Saksono Harbuwono stated in a broadcast here that Indonesia has assets in the form of rich demographic and genetic variations, thereby making the country a fitting place for clinical research and trials.
"(However) it is not as simple as having great assets. We know there are 300 national referral hospitals, yet only 15 per cent have conducted clinical trials," Harbuwono remarked.
He compared the condition with other countries that have aggressively pursued such an initiative, such as Thailand, which in the last decade conducted clinical trials while employing digital tech and international collaboration.
Thus, he is optimistic that the INACRC can be a platform to promote organised research through a collaborative approach with researchers having brilliant ideas. Moreover, he said the INACRC is expected to encourage clinical research in hospitals in Indonesia.
Harbuwono also expected the centre to facilitate multinational research.
According to the deputy health minister, one of the facility's highlights is the development of precision medicine that adopts artificial intelligence, thereby marking significant progress in national research.
The deputy minister drew attention to other measures taken to encourage such research in Indonesia, such as simplifying regulations and establishing a committee to issue clinical research permissions more efficiently.
Moreover, he noted that the Biomedical & Genome Science Initiative (BGSi) can be utilised as a central laboratory for clinical trials of multinational studies.
He aims for INACRC to become a place referred for multinational research.
"Hopefully, with INACRC, we can create more research conducted in Southeast Asia," he remarked.
--BERNAMA-ANTARA
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