Hundreds of government applications are not connected to each other
The condition of the fragmentation of government applications in Indonesia
In the Indonesian government environment, many applications are independent and not connected to each other. According to the records of the Ministry of Communication and Digital until January 2026, there are about 27 thousand independent applications. These applications are spread across ministries and institutions, both at the central and regional levels.
Dyah Mutiarin, Professor of the Transformation of Digital Government from the University of Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta (UMY), said that this fact shows an apprehensive situation. “That’s an alarming fact about the many independent and non-integrated government applications,” he said in the Smart Data Forum: Strengthening Data Interoperability on Friday, February 20, 2026.
According to Dyah, this condition is an anomaly of the government’s digital transformation efforts. “With such a large amount, you can imagine how the data recording process, the level of utility, who the users are, and whether they are connected to each other or not,” he said.
Problems that arise due to data fragmentation
According to Dyah, the condition of this fragmentation has the potential to trigger various serious problems. Starting from differences in data standards to the strengthening of inter-institutional sectoral egos. He explained that interoperability or the ability of accurate data sharing systems is currently a very crucial need to support the formulation of evidence-based policies.Evidence-based policy).
Dyah warned, “If the data is not connected to each other, the policy analysis process will be slow, imprecise, and high risk of producing inappropriate decisions for the community.”
Strengthening interoperability is not only technology
Furthermore, he emphasized that strengthening interoperability is not only limited to technological sophistication, but also includes aspects of governance, regulation, and institutional capacity. Dyah urged the government to be reactive towards predictive government that is able to anticipate public needs in the future through the use of integrated data.
“Digital government is currently moving towards data-driven governance. From what was originally reactive, the government must be predictive,” he said.
Predictive Analysis Design for Data Policy
Ideally, Dyah added, the government is able to anticipate the needs of the community before being asked. “We propose design Predictive Analysis for Data Policy, where integrated and quality data is used to project problems for the next five to ten years.”
He also urged the government to map the interoperability needs of cross-agency data, especially at the local government level. Dyah asked for a review of the type of data that is worthy of being a shared database, strengthening inter-system connectivity, and the addition of analytical functions and artificial intelligence in government data platforms.
the results of the study and initial recommendations
According to Dyah, the results of this study and mapping can be an initial recommendation for the development of a smart data policy model. “With an integrated system, the government is expected to be able to formulate public policies that are more effective, efficient, and supported by accurate data evidence to improve the quality of public services as a whole,” he said.
