VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

VOINews, Jakarta - Indonesian Finance Minister Sri Mulyani highlighted that the government has allotted a budget for education amounting to Rp612 trillion in 2023.

"In 2023, the Indonesian government has allocated an education budget of Rp612 trillion, or around US$40 billion," the minister noted during a discussion at the Inclusive Lifelong Learning Conference (ILLC) in Badung, Bali, Wednesday.

Mulyani noted that in line with the Constitution, the government should spend 20 percent of the budget on education.

The minister remarked that the budget was allocated by the central government and regional governments.

"This shows that the management structure of education, from elementary to high school is the responsibility of the local government," she noted.

According to Mulyani, most of the education budget is allocated to support elementary to high school education, as Indonesia's demographic composition is still dominated by young people.

The minister also emphasized the need for the local government to have the ability to manage the budget in an organized manner as well as be responsible for spending on basic education.

Mulyani emphasized that Indonesia prioritized efforts to improve education, such as developing infrastructure for physical structures in several schools in Indonesia, which has been an achievement in the last two decades.

"This is a big challenge for us, considering that geographically, we are very large, with an unequal population," she noted.

Mulyani stated that since 2005, the government has also helped through the School Operational Assistance (BOS) given directly to schools.

In addition, students from underprivileged and vulnerable families will be assisted with scholarships through the government's Smart Indonesia Program (PIP) that began in 2014.

Mulyani affirmed that through these efforts, education in Indonesia has made substantial progress, with an increase in Early Childhood Education (PAUD) enrollment, from 35.18 to 35.28 percent; Elementary Schools, from 97.20 percent to 99.10 percent; Junior High Schools, from 82.6 to 95.9 percent; and Senior High School, from 52.8 to 73.15 percent.   (Antaranews)