Gov’t Ensures Infrastructure and Curriculum Preparedness for 53 People’s Schools

President Prabowo Subianto holds a limited meeting on People’s School program, Monday (03/10), at Merdeka Palace, Jakarta. (Photo by: Bureau of Press, Media, and Information of Presidential Secretariat)

The Government is further finalizing the plan to launch People’s School program in the 2025-2026 school year. In a meeting led by President Prabowo Subianto, Monday (03/10), at Merdeka Palace, Jakarta, ministers of the Red and White Cabinet discussed various important aspects related to this program, including the location, curriculum, facilities and infrastructure, as well as student admission mechanism.

Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf (Gus Ipul) reported that People’s School program is ready to run in 53 locations. “We would like to report that, as of today, there are more than 50 locations, 53 locations to be exact, which are ready to organize the schools. However, the data is still being collected because in the next 2-3 days we will coordinate with governors, regents, and mayors, to prepare this simultaneously,” he said in his press statement to the media after the meeting.

According to Gus Ipul, President Prabowo ordered to fully develop this program and expected that it could cover as many regions as possible. “In principle, the President ordered to further develop the plan, follow it up, and involve the participation of as many regions as possible in this first launch,” he said.

On the same occasion, Chief Statistician of Statistics Indonesia Amalia Adininggar Widyasanti affirmed that the data for student admission will be derived from the National Social Economic Single Data (DTSEN), especially from decile 1 and decile 2 groups, which are considered as communities with the most fragile economic conditions. She also added that the chosen 53 locations are mostly in regions with school shortages and a high rate of disadvantaged communities.

“So, this is in line with the data of Statistics Indonesia,” Amalia stated.

Gus Ipul added that the People’s School program is not only focused on curriculum, but also on making sure of the infrastructure readiness. He stated that the chosen schools should fulfill qualification requirements, including the availability of dormitories, classrooms, praying rooms, canteen, and sports facilities.

The People’s School’s locations are spreading across various regions, including East Java, West Java, Central Java, and East Nusa Tenggara provinces as well as several provinces in Kalimantan and Papua islands. In addition, two universities, namely Malang Brawijaya University and Surabaya State University (UNESA), have expressed their commitment to supporting the implementation of this program.

The Government will continuously consolidate the budget to build and renovate the facilities. “The President ordered us to consolidate continuously, as best as we can. This is part of improving the lives of disadvantaged families and helping them thrive in order to realize the 2045 Golden Indonesia vision,” stated Gus Ipul.

Currently, teams from related ministries are discussing important aspects of this program, such as the curriculum, recruitment of teaching staff, facilities and infrastructure, supervision, and governance. Gus Ipul emphasized that in the next few weeks, the Government will announce a clearer scheme regarding the number of students per school and the budget allocation.

Through this program, the Government aims to provide access to quality education for disadvantaged communities. In addition, it also serves as a strategic measure in realizing the vision of Golden Indonesia 2045. (Bureau of Press, Media, and Information of Presidential Secretariat) (TCUD/AW/MMB)