- Basic infrastructure such as a reliable power supply must be in place
- Government driven initiatives such as smart city projects are crucial to further progress
The Indonesian digital ecosystem is increasingly moving towards utilising cloud and data centres in the government and private sectors to increase transparency and offer faster access.
At the DCD Indonesia 2017 conference, three local cloud providers share their thoughts on the future of cloud and data centres as well as what it takes to support their growth and implementation.
PT Awan Integrasi Sandidata (VibiCloud) focuses on cloud computing in Indonesia.
VibiCloud founder and chief executive officer Alfonsus Bram Radityo Nugroho says that there are many high quality data centres in Indonesia. However, work is needed to put basic infrastructure, such as a reliable power supply in place.
“If we want to talk about the future of cloud and data centres in Indonesia, I think what we need to prepare the electricity supply first. The problem is we only have one company that provides electricity for the whole country, which is Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) or State Electricity Company. We trust in PLN as an electricity provider but we need to see improvements.
“With an improvement in electricity supply, data centres in Indonesia will have much big opportunities,” adds Alfonsus.
PT Awan Solusi Informatika (Cloudmatika) is local cloud solutions company that uses technology acquired through cooperation with Japan-based Tsukaeru Group.
Cloudmatika chief executive officer Ted Hilbert thinks that there is another power source available for cloud and data centres, which is geo carbon energy. However, it may take some time to harness this force.
“We can use geo carbon energy. But it has a long way to go. We need investments, commitment from the government and it will take time. Power consumption will continue to become more significant as time passes,” Ted says.
Indonesian Agency for Creative Economy (Bekraf) deputy director of ICT planning infrastructure Menhariq Noor fully supports the increased use of cloud and data centres and agrees that a steady supply of electricity is crucial to any further developments.
“I agree that the main source of power for data centres is electricity. It is important to have a steady power supply in order to maintain a high volume of data,” adds Menhariq.
Regulations to support cloud and data centre usage
Along with infrastructure development and the nurturing of talent in order to maximise the use of cloud and data centres, the government has to use these tools itself and draft regulations to support companies that want to move into the cloud.
The Indonesian government is focusing on turning large cities such as Jakarta into smart cities, in which cloud and data centres play large role in making processes faster and more accessible.
Established in 2011, IndonesianCloud is an independent cloud service provider (CSP), specialising in the delivery of managed IT services based around the principle of “on-demand, dynamic, and pay-per-use.
IndonesianCloud chief executive officer Noerman Taufik believes that in five to 10 years, all cities in Indonesia will have their own data centres with policies in place to support this process.
“I think government policies should support this process so all companies will want to increasingly utilise the cloud and data centres in their operations.
“Cloud will be necessary to accomplish smart city projects. But, we need the government to support us by initiating the smart city project and we as private companies will participate in the process,” adds Noerman.
The three companies also discussed the regulations needed to support cloud and data centre growth within the private sector.
For Ted, it is necessary for the government to start moving to the cloud now.
“We are currently moving 60 racks of data centres to three racks by using cloud. So we can imagine how Indonesia will be able to save electricity and operational costs with the help of cloud. But to do that we need to rely on good, safe, and cost-efficient providers,” Ted says.
Alfonsus agrees with Ted that it is better to use modern technology in this digital era.
“When you want to have faster development, you cannot use traditional systems. You need a modern system such as cloud where you can get data faster as this will lead to better progress in delivering fast,” adds Alfonsus.
Noerman encourages the government to appoint someone to be responsible for managing and centralising the smart city or e-government project.
“I think we need to have a Ministry to manage these cloud providers and be responsible for how to centralise the smart city or e-government. The central government can invest, while provincial governments share in the investment or become the users.
“It has to be distributive cloud which will be spread to several places so it will be approachable but it has to belong to the central government. Cloud will help reduce the possibility of corruption as it creates more transparency,” says Noerman.
Ending the panel discussion, all three agree that the future of cloud and data centres in Indonesia depends on infrastructure development especially in terms of electricity supply and government regulations.
“Everything is good about the cloud, so do not let regulation become the ‘enemy’ of cloud. What we can do as cloud providers is to nurture and educate highly-skilled people or engineers and contribute to the economy,” concludes Noerman.
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Autor(en)/Author(s): Yunnie Marzuki
Quelle/Source: Digital News Asia, 13.04.2017
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