President Prabowo Subianto Invites UK Universities to Establish 10 World-Class Campuses in Indonesia

President Prabowo Subianto invites leading UK universities to collaborate on establishing ten new universities in Indonesia during the UK-Indonesia Education Roundtable held at Lancaster House, London, Tuesday (01/20).

President Prabowo Subianto has invited leading UK universities to partner with the Indonesian Government in establishing ten new universities across Indonesia.

This call was made by the President at the UK-Indonesia Education Roundtable hosted at Lancaster House, London, Tuesday (01/20).

“We want to invite more collaboration with them. They already built many partnerships with University of Indonesia, Gadjah Mada University, and numerous other universities. They also have campuses here, in Singosari, in Bandung, in fields we need. such as digital and technology sectors. Hence, we want to accelerate our education level, we must have the highest level of education, on par with the world’s best,” the President stated.

In his opening remarks at the meeting, the President highlighted Indonesia’s significant shortage of medical personnel, including doctors and dentists. The President also noted that Indonesia still lacks approximately 140,000 doctors, while the annual graduates remain woefully limited.

“We only produce around 9,000 doctors each year. So, it will take years, and by the time we reach 140,000 doctors, more doctors will retire as well. This calls for a strategic plan,” the President said.

To address this challenge, the President added that the Government plans to build ten new universities focused on medical education, dentistry, pharmacy, and science and technology fields. He also emphasized that these universities will meet international standards and use English as the main language.

“I want to adopt English standards, the highest educational standards from the best universities in the UK,” the President said.

The Head of State also explained that the students are the top graduates and will receive full government scholarships and they will undergo intensive English language training before starting their studies. The Indonesian Government is also open to partnerships with the British Council, including the adoption of IELTS standards.

In addition to university development, President Prabowo Subianto also outlined plans to develop internationally accredited teaching hospitals at each campus. This initiative is expected to enhance national healthcare quality and reduce Indonesians’ expenditures on overseas medical treatment.

“In my opinion, if we do this (building international-standard teaching hospitals at each campus), we could save US$6 billion annually, which can be disbursed to these universities and hospitals,” he stated.

The Head of State also affirmed Indonesia’s openness to foreign lecturers and professors, including guest professor schemes from partner universities. He also expressed belief that this collaboration will yield mutual benefits for advancing education and healthcare in Indonesia. He is optimistic that all preparations can be completed in 2028.

“By early 2028, we can have the first batch in Indonesia. The plan is to develop an integrated zone comprising these universities so that the Government can ensure the quality of life, safety, and security across all campuses to attract foreign lecturers to work in Indonesia,” the President remarked. (BPMI) (EST/EP)