Jakarta — Deputy Minister of Communication and Digital Affairs Nezar Patria said workers in Indonesia must understand artificial intelligence (AI) technologies relevant to their jobs to navigate shifting work dynamics in the digital era, in a statement received here on Saturday.
“This dilemma is real, because the rapid advancement of generative AI has changed the way we work, make decisions, and serve the public,” Patria said. Referring to a report by the International Labour Organization (ILO), he noted that nearly one in four workers in the ASEAN region hold jobs exposed to generative AI.
Patria warned that the impact of AI adoption extends beyond employment and could affect state revenue and the fiscal structure. “For the Indonesian government, this finding is not just an academic topic,” he said, arguing that policy should strengthen the government’s capacity to understand, manage, and utilize the technology from the outset rather than wait for effects to materialize.
AI literacy and civil service upskilling
In the governance context, Patria emphasized that upskilling and reskilling civil servants (ASN) is an urgent need. He said civil servants involved in formulating labor, taxation, digital economy and digital governance policies need to understand how AI works, its impacts and its potential risks. “Skills upgrading and retraining are no longer optional,” he stressed.
Patria expressed hope that strengthening government competency would focus on long-term readiness, including AI literacy, policy analysis skills and data-based decision-making. With such capacity, civil servants are expected to become drivers of digital government transformation while helping build a resilient and inclusive national workforce for the AI era.
He added that government readiness for AI implementation also requires strong governance and cross-sector coordination. “The government must act as a knowledgeable regulator, not a reactive one,” Patria noted.
