India’s development success stories pulling Indonesia closer, giving new momentum to bilateral ties
New Delhi, July 5 (IANS) India’s success stories across various sectors are making Indonesia look towards it as a trusted source of technology, policy ideas and development solutions, government officials said on Sunday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s upcoming visit to Indonesia from July 6 to 8 comes at a time when the partnership between the two countries is moving beyond traditional cooperation.
“In India’s development in several sectors, from food security and digital governance to healthcare, agriculture and defence, its successful public policy models are becoming valuable reference points for Indonesia’s own development journey,” Government officials said in a statement.
Among these successes, India’s digital public infrastructure has also emerged as a major area of collaboration. Indonesia’s Open Network (ION) is inspired by India’s ONDC model and aims to create a more open and inclusive digital marketplace for more than 65 million micro, small, and medium enterprises in Indonesia and is expected to mark its first live transaction during the Summit between PM Modi–President Prabowo Subianto on July 7.
Several delegations from Indonesia have visited India to learn from India’s Digital Infrastructure and social welfare schemes like the Public Distribution System (PDS), the rice fortification scheme, fertiliser subsidy reforms, AgriStack, etc.
“The proposed UPI-QRIS linkage will allow seamless cross-border payments for travellers and businesses in both countries would be transformative for Indian businesses with trade or investment exposure in Indonesia, and for the estimated 1.7 million Indian tourists who visit Bali and other Indonesian destinations each year,” Government officials added.
Indonesia’s Free Nutritious Meals programme has drawn inspiration from India’s Mid-Day Meal (PM POSHAN) scheme. Similarly, its Red and White Village Cooperatives initiative is exploring cooperation with India for affordable medicines through the Jan Aushadhi model, helping strengthen healthcare access in rural areas.
India’s digital partnership with Indonesia is now moving beyond sharing successful models to helping build the country’s next-generation digital backbone. Indonesia’s ambitious Digital Nusantara initiative aims to create a unified and interoperable national digital infrastructure, and Indian technology expertise is emerging as an important partner in this journey.
New Delhi’s digital solutions that powered Aadhaar, UPI, DigiLocker, e-KYC and ONDC are now finding relevance in Jakarta’s own digital transformation. This marks a shift from technology adoption to deeper institutional collaboration, with Indian companies contributing their experience in building secure, population-scale digital public infrastructure.
The partnership is expanding into defence as well. Indonesia is working with India on defence manufacturing, technology transfer, military training and maritime cooperation. India’s experience in indigenous defence production under Atmanirbhar Bharat is creating new opportunities for long-term collaboration.
As PM Modi visits Indonesia, this growing knowledge partnership is emerging as one of the strongest pillars of bilateral ties, creating opportunities for innovation, economic growth and long-term strategic cooperation. These initiatives reflect a broader trend where India’s development journey is no longer only benefiting its own citizens but is increasingly serving as a blueprint for friendly countries.
–IANS
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