16 Pilot People's Schools Not Recruiting New Students
The Ministry of Social Affairs revealed that 16 pilot People’s Schools (SR) are not recruiting new students during the transition to permanent building standardisation.
Social Affairs Minister Saifullah Yusuf stated on Tuesday in Jakarta that the decision was made because the locations of these 16 pilot schools are too far from the nearest permanent People’s Schools, making student transfer arrangements impossible.
‘For pilot schools where transfer to a permanent school is not feasible due to distance, we have no choice but not to recruit new students this year. There are 16 such People’s Schools,’ he said.
He explained that under the asset management roadmap, the ministry is applying caution to ensure the safety and comfort of teaching and learning, ensuring the transition proceeds smoothly without technical issues.
According to the ministry’s mitigation formula, areas with ready pilot or permanent buildings are deemed safe, as are those operating permanent schools without pilot phases.
For areas with pilot schools but unfinished permanent buildings, the ministry has implemented a transfer scheme where new students are placed in the nearest permanent People’s Schools.
For the 16 pilot schools not recruiting new students, teaching operations will focus on completing the education of existing students registered in previous periods.
The affected areas include border and island regions such as SR Pilot 12 Anambas, SR Pilot 32 Natuna, SR Pilot 33 Tanjung Pinang, SR Pilot 41 Biak Numfor, SR Pilot 42 Sarmi, SR Pilot 29 Jayapura, SR Pilot 75 Jayapura, SR Pilot 77 Merauke, SR Pilot 76 Mimika, SR Pilot 20 Palu, SR Pilot 22 Sigi, and SR Pilot 60 Tojo Una-Una.
People’s Schools are a priority programme of President Prabowo Subianto designed to provide free education for children from the lowest welfare households (decile 1-4) based on the National Socioeconomic Single Data (DTSEN).
The initiative integrates comprehensive poverty alleviation through services like Free Nutritious Meals (MBG), Free Health Checks (CKG), PBI-JK health insurance, and links to the Red and White Cooperative and the 3 Million Houses Programme.
According to Ministry data, 166 pilot People’s Schools are currently operational across 38 provinces since July 2025, serving 15,900 students from primary to secondary levels supported by thousands of educators.
The government is currently building 101 permanent People’s Schools this year as part of a larger target of constructing 500 permanent schools by 2029.
In Jakarta and surrounding areas, the Ministry recently announced 10 new pilot People’s Schools specifically for homeless children, street children, and those at risk of dropping out.