Jakarta. Indonesia is partnering with UK-based Dataswyft to roll out a nationwide “smart data” ecosystem designed to boost food security, streamline farming operations, and empower rural communities.

The agreement, signed Thursday at the Agriculture Ministry in Jakarta, will have the National Food Brigade and Dataswyft develop a secure, shareable, user-controlled data platform to tackle one of the sector’s chronic challenges: disconnected systems and information that hinder collaboration among agencies, farmers, and private partners.

“This partnership enables us to use smart identity and data to coordinate multiple agencies, stakeholders, and farmers for food security and rural prosperity,” said National Food Brigade Chairman Ichi Indrawan. He described the system as a key agritech solution to accelerate President Prabowo Subianto’s food self-sufficiency program.

At the heart of the initiative is the Dataswyft Wallet, a privacy-first digital tool allowing users to collect, own, and share their data on their own terms. Farmers will be able to access tailored services from government and the private sector, receive targeted support, and contribute verified information to national programs, all while retaining control over how their data is used.

“Indonesia is showing bold leadership by adopting a global, cross-border digital public infrastructure that can leapfrog the country into the next-generation digital economy,” said Dataswyft Group London CEO Professor Irene Ng.

Dataswyft will also establish its Indonesian operations and a HATLAB Studio in Jakarta, bringing together specialists, technology partners, and investors interested in developing smart data markets. The pilot phase will start in southern Sumatra, with an estimated $5 million budget to digitize data for 10 million farmers.

Rusmin Lawin, Deputy Chair of the National Food Brigade Advisory Board, said the system will pave the way for greater transparency in farming practices, making agricultural financing more attractive to capital partners.

Senior Director for Global Strategy and Growth at Dataswyft Davide Ceper added that the platform will serve as a unifying hub for collaboration across the agricultural value chain, “unlocking growth, efficiency, and prosperity for Indonesia’s farming communities.”