The day of graduation at one of Indonesia’s major universities draws near. Electrical engineering students who have been lectured and supported by a SEEDs professional look forward with expectation for the future. Graduation is an event that is joyfully celebrated with family and friends.

Whereas in many industrial countries there are many open job opportunities, here in Indonesia it is still difficult to find employment in the field of integrated chip (IC) design. Graduates end up in jobs that are not related to their academic qualification (see Training in New Technologies that Brighten the Future).

Recognising this challenge, this SEEDs member worked with one of the graduates of the masters program to survey the availability of low-cost hardware. They found that most of the hardware was expensive due to import costs or not cutting-edge technology.

What if the hardware was produced, marketed and even packaged with training by local engineers themselves? A cost analysis was made about components that are available or could be produced locally and about those that still needed to be imported. It would be difficult to compete with foreign manufacturers but promoting the products with available service and training could be a convincing selling factor and actually meet the needs in industry and academic institutions to further get acquainted with IC technology.

A business like this could also help to create more jobs for electrical engineers with skills in IC design, supporting the local and national economy, in line with SEEDs’ vision to support young leaders to find solutions to the challenges they face in order to benefit their communities and country.

SEEDs workers

SEEDs workers partnering with local charity Yayasan Pendar Pagi in Riau, Sumatra identify families that are unable to find regular work due to poor health, age, or other limiting factors with the intention of empowering these families with the means to supplement their income with home-raised chickens.

One such family is that of Mrs Bini, whose husband died several months ago. As a widow raising four children and supporting her aging parents she is in need of additional income.   SEEDs workers joined with local village leaders to identify this family and together construct a sturdy chicken coop capable of housing 20+ chickens. Mrs Bini and her family received one rooster and two hens as an initial step towards their families’ success in raising chickens.

Mrs Bini’s whole extended family network is quite poor, but it was encouraging to see that another family member who had a friend at a local saw-mill saw Mrs. Bini’s chicken coop and constructed his own using scraps that the saw mill was planning on throwing out. Now Mrs. Bini’s extended family also has the hope to be able to sell chickens at the local market.