Leiden University has a longstanding and dynamic partnership with institutions in Indonesia. The collaboration is rooted in a shared commitment to advancing knowledge and science through collaborative research, education, and equitable knowledge exchange. The partnership reflects a relationship of mutual respect and joint discovery.

Researchers from Leiden University and its partner research institutes have always had a genuine and broad interest in Indonesia. Partly instigated by a colonial past, there has been a long tradition of studies in history, language, culture, religion, society, law, biology and environment of Indonesia. In the past decades, these topics have increasingly been studied in collaboration with and often driven by Indonesian colleagues.

Leiden University is committed to foster many partnerships in Indonesia in order to contribute to the scientific infrastructure, as well as broader developments in social, culture, and economic sectors. Through the education of talented young Indonesians, Leiden University also contributes to the capacity building in Indonesia’s society at large.

With the pressing need on multidisciplinary approach in tackling environmental and societal challenges, mid 2025 the Leiden-Delft-Erasmus Universities (LDE) Centre in Indonesia was launched in Jakarta. Activities include field-based education such as the Bachelor Minor on Future Challenges Lab, Master's Thesis Lab, and inter-university consortia such as the Indonesia-Netherlands Universities Consortium for Sustainable fuTures. The consortium aims to provide a platform establishing a more sustainable and structured foundation for long term collaboration. 

 

Leiden-Indonesia Programme

In order to strengthen the cooperation with Indonesia, Leiden University has developed the Leiden-Indonesia Programme. Dedicated activities are being implemented together with Indonesian partners. Some of the most important partners are:

Universities

• Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya
• Universitas Brawijaya, Malang
• Universitas Diponegoro, Semarang
• Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta
• Universitas Hasanuddin, Makassar
• Universitas Indonesia, Jakarta
• Universitas Kristen Atma Jaya, Jakarta
• Universitas Mulawarman, Samarinda
• Universitas Padjajaran, Bandung
• Institut Teknologi Bandung

Other organisations

• National Agency for Research and Innovation (BRIN)
• Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP)
• Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology (Kemdikti Saintek)
• Ministry of Religious Affairs (Kemenag)
• National Archives Republic of Indonesia (ANRI)
• National Library Republic of Indonesia (Perpusnas)
• Erasmus Training Center, Jakarta (ETC)