05 July 2025
Anonymous Writer
The Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Sumatera Utara (USU), in collaboration with the Undergraduate Program in Agribusiness and PT Agrari, successfully held a public lecture on Wednesday, July 2, 2025, at the Suratman Hall, Faculty of Agriculture. The event was highlighted by the presence of a prominent figure—Prof. Bungaran Saragih, Ph.D., former Minister of Agriculture of the Republic of Indonesia (2000–2004) and Professor at IPB University—as the keynote speaker.
The public lecture was also attended by the Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture, Prof. Dr. Ir. Tavi Supriana, MS., along with the Vice Deans II and III, the Head and Secretary of the Agribusiness Program, and Mr. Agus Hatimbulan, S.P., Head of Agronomy at PT Agrari. Lecturers and students from the Faculty of Agriculture and the Faculty of Economics and Business at USU also participated, totaling approximately 125 attendees.
The lecture raised the topic of agricultural downstreaming under the theme “Agribusiness as the Foundation of Indonesia’s Economic Re-Industrialization.” The session was moderated by Vista Uli Sihombing, M.Si., and ran smoothly from start to finish.
In her opening remarks, Prof. Tavi Supriana stated, “It is an honor for the Faculty of Agriculture at USU to welcome Prof. Bungaran Saragih as the speaker of today’s lecture. I can personally attest to his brilliance in macroeconomics, as I was once his student during my master's studies at IPB.”
In his lecture, Prof. Bungaran Saragih explained, “Indonesia is currently aiming for 8% annual economic growth along with food and energy security. To support this target, the government is promoting industrialization, now commonly known as downstreaming.” He added, “Although downstreaming has been ongoing in Indonesia for a long time, it remains shallow in aggregate terms. This is reflected in the 2023 ratio of value added in the agro-industry sector to the agriculture sector, which is still around one.”
The lecture sparked lively engagement from the audience, evidenced by the many questions raised during the discussion session. It is hoped that through this lecture, students and participants gained deeper insight into the importance of agricultural downstreaming as a strategy to support national economic re-industrialization. The event also aims to inspire the younger generation, especially those in agribusiness, to take an active role in sustainable and high-value agricultural development.
Faculty of Agriculture USU and Faculty of Engineering USU Establish Partnership with PTPN IV to Promote Research Commercialization
NewsDean of FP USU Serves as Resource Person in Agrarian Reform Technical Guidance, Promotes Land Empowerment for Community Welfare
NewsFaculty of Agriculture USU Explores International Collaboration with Peking University and YAGASU to Strengthen Environmental Research and Blue Economy Development
