The academic community of the Faculty of Islamic Economics and Business, UIN Sunan Kalijaga has demonstrated consistent improvement in its international and regional achievements. Achmad Nurdany, S.E.I., S.E., M.E.K., and Anggari Marya Kresnowati, S.E., M.E., both lecturers of the Islamic Economics Study Program, FEBI, were honored with the best paper award at the East Java Economic (EJAVEC) Forum 2018. This prestigious event, taking place in Surabaya from Tuesday to Friday (13-16), was held through a collaboration between Bank Indonesia KPW East Java and Airlangga University.

According to the committee chairman's report, the 2018 EJAVEC Forum exhibited a significant improvement compared to previous years. A total of 220 papers were submitted, with 60 percent falling into the general category and 40 percent into the student category. Subsequently, 53 papers were selected for presentation in front of a jury comprising practitioners, academics, and Bank Indonesia regulators. The participants hailed from diverse regions, not only from East Java, but also from DKI Jakarta, Special Region of Yogyakarta, Bandung, Jember, Jambi, and even from Malaysia and US.

In a separate interview, Nurdany revealed that the theme of his paper revolved around the digital economy sector in East Java and its disruptive effects on the province's economic growth. He emphasized the scarcity of empirical studies despite the extensive discussions on the digital economy. "From this research, we found that the digital economy sector, particularly the manufacturing subsector, has a significant disruptive effect on the economy of East Java," he remarked.

This is evident from the analysis results, which demonstrated a significant link between the manufacturing sector and other sectors, both in forward and backward linkages. Additionally, the multiplier effect generated was substantial in terms of output, income, and employment. Furthermore, the investment simulation in the manufacturing industry subsector yielded highly positive results. "Although we did not secure the championship, attaining the best paper award is gratifying given the tough competition to reach this stage," Nurdany concluded.