Latest news with #NationalEducationDay
Daily Express
04-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Express
US44b for education but ‘some schools only have one toilet'
Published on: Sunday, May 04, 2025 Published on: Sun, May 04, 2025 By: Jakarta Globe Text Size: Prabowo delivers his National Education Day speech at an elementary school in Bogor May 2. JAKARTA: President Prabowo Subianto revealed Friday that the government had allocated a record-breaking education budget, but the money was not going to the right people as some schools were still in poor condition with all its students even having to share one toilet. May 2 marks the National Education Day. Indonesia is trying to improve its human capital, among others, by having a multibillion-dollar nutrient-rich meal program. The country's curriculum also keeps on changing in hopes it will finally meet what the industry needs. But there are other things that Indonesia needs to pay attention to, namely the state of the school's physical infrastructure and facilities. In his National Education Day speech, Prabowo revealed that countless schools in the country were in bad shape despite the big education budget. For the 2025 fiscal year, Indonesia has set aside Rp 724.3 trillion ($44 billion) for the education sector. Southeast Asia's largest economy had allocated Rp 665 trillion in education spending for 2024. Over the past decades, the government has earmarked about 20 percent of its annual budget for education as mandated by the constitution. Parts of the money also go to renovating schools. 'The current education budget is the highest-ever in Indonesian history, about 22 percent of our state budget. … Education will determine whether Indonesia will be a poor nation or grow into a country that can provide a better life for its people,' Prabowo said at an elementary school in Bogor. 'But let us ask ourselves, has all that money we spent [on education] over the years already gone to the right 'addresses'? Many schools are damaged even though we know that the money [for the renovations] is there. And how come there is only one toilet?' Prabowo alluded that the money could have been lost to corruption as he urged his government officials to make sure that the designated budget must go into school renovations, as it should be. Indonesia is known to have been grappling with entrenched corruption. It scored 37 out of 100 points on the 2024 Corruption Perceptions Index. A score of 0 indicates a highly corrupt country, while 100 means that it is very clean. The government plans to spend around Rp 16.9 trillion on school renovations for this year alone. Prabowo admitted that this was far from enough if Indonesia wanted to fix its school buildings. * Follow us on Instagram and join our Telegram and/or WhatsApp channel(s) for the latest news you don't want to miss. * Do you have access to the Daily Express e-paper and online exclusive news? Check out subscription plans available. Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express's Telegram channel. Daily Express Malaysia
The Star
03-05-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Prabowo announces quick wins in education in Indonesia
JAKARTA: President Prabowo Subianto has launched initiatives to generate major reforms of the country's education system, as he reaffirms his commitment to make education a foundation of his national development agenda. The initiatives' launch ceremony took place during the celebration of National Education Day on Friday at SDN Cimahpar 5 state elementary school in Bogor, West Java. Indonesia commemorates National Education Day every May 2, the birthday of Indonesian educationalist Ki Hajar Dewantara. In an event attended by teachers, students and several government officials, the President announced the initiatives, officially called Program Hasil Terbaik Cepat (fast and best results), which he envisioned as part of the government's effort to build a more equitable and effective education system. Among the key initiatives is the renovation and upgrade of 10,440 educational facilities and school buildings this year, which would cost the nation Rp 17.1 trillion (US$1.02 billion). The programme, which is expected to benefit both public and private schools, aims to provide students with safe and conducive learning environments. 'It might take 30 years to repair all schools, [but] we cannot give up,' Prabowo said. 'We must fix as many schools as possible, as quickly as possible.' Another plan is distributing smart, interactive television screens to schools across the country to support digital learning and facilitate access to high-quality educational materials, especially in regions lacking specialist teachers. The rollout is set to begin in coming months, with the target of reaching every school by mid-2026. 'Through these screens, we can deliver the best lessons, and this will be especially useful for schools in remote, underdeveloped and outer regions, as well as urban areas that struggle to access quality materials or expert teachers,' said the President. Recognising the importance of qualified educators, Prabowo said the government would also provide financial aid for teachers to pursue a four-year diploma degree or a bachelor's degree. Each eligible teacher will receive Rp 3 million per semester to support their studies. The government would also give a monthly cash stipend amounting Rp 300,000 to contract teachers, said the President. The money is expected to provide financial relief for teachers who often work long hours for minimal pay, especially those who are not yet officially certified or promoted to the status of permanent teacher and civil servant. In his speech on Friday, Prabowo expressed his commitment to streamlining budget use and cutting unnecessary spending to fund school repairs and push for education innovation, asserting that education would remain a top priority in his administration. Education has received a large portion of this year's state budget with Rp 724 trillion, up about nine percent from the Rp 665 trillion allocated in 2024. The President has repeatedly claimed that the 2025 figure was the biggest in the country's history. But he blamed persistent corruption for hindering reform in the education sector, which is marked by many schools remaining in poor condition. 'How can a school have only one toilet? Where has the money been going?' Prabowo said, urging officials at all levels to act in the service of the public rather than for personal gain. 'Good start' Education expert Doni Koesoema from Multimeda Nusantara University (UMN) called the initiatives 'concrete', noting that school renovations are important and urgent as thousands of schools nationwide still have poor infrastructure. 'The plan is a good start for Prabowo's first year,' Doni said, 'but it must continue every year throughout his presidency so that it can strengthen students' access to education, which is a goal of the 2025-2045 National Long-Term Development Plan [RPJPN].' He added that the planned financial assistance for contract teachers and teachers without undergraduate degrees would improve the educators' welfare and, in turn, the quality of education. However, education observer Ina Liem said Prabowo's string of programmes may be too dependent on goods and services procurement, which is prone to misappropriation of funds, an aspect she called 'the root problem of the country's education issues'. 'There's no such need for a ton of programmes [to fix the education system]. If we can fix our people's corruptive mentality, we can address most problems in our education system,' Ina said. She also said that Prabowo's plans lacked urgency, pointing out that smart TVs 'are more necessary for government employees to improve their digitalised system to fight corruption' rather than for students. - The Jakarta Post/ANN
