Cilegon City Government Prepares Free Private Primary and Secondary School Programme to Boost Human Resources

As an effort to expand access to education while easing the cost burden on the community, the Cilegon City Government is preparing a Free Private Primary School and Secondary School programme. The programme, which is targeted to commence in January 2027, represents a form of commitment by the Cilegon City Government to improve the quality of human resources and ensure all children in Cilegon obtain their right to education. “God willing, if Allah makes it easy and the entire process runs smoothly, starting January 2027, the education costs for private primary and secondary schools included in this programme can be financed by the Cilegon City Government,” said Cilegon Mayor Robinsar on Tuesday, 14 July 2026. According to him, the programme is currently in the assessment stage to ensure its implementation is well targeted. “God willing, this programme is being studied and refined thoroughly.” Robinsar stated that this policy is a solution to various problems that often arise during the implementation of the New Student Admissions System, particularly for communities that have not been able to access state schools due to limited capacity or economic conditions. The new student admissions process has often become a polemic in society because many parents pursue state schools so their children can attend school without being burdened by fees. “The Cilegon City Government will soon present a free private primary and secondary school programme to help ease the burden on the community,” Robinsar said. The implementation of the programme will be preceded by a verification process for private schools that will become government partners. Not all private schools will immediately enter the programme, but will be adjusted according to established criteria and requirements. “There will be a verification process for schools that meet the categories to receive this programme. The main objective is to ease the burden on parents, as well as to make the compulsory education programme in Cilegon a success so as to increase the Human Development Index and the quality of human resources,” he said. According to him, the free private school policy is part of the Cilegon City Government’s strategy to ensure no child drops out of school for economic reasons. He stated that education is a long-term investment that will determine the region’s progress. “This is the Cilegon City Government’s solution to improve the quality of human resources, increase education participation rates, and simultaneously ease the burden on parents. We want all Cilegon children to have the same opportunity to receive a decent education,” he said. If all stages of planning, regulation, and budgeting can be completed on schedule, the Cilegon City Government is targeting the free private primary and secondary school programme to be implemented starting January 2027. Meanwhile, the Head of the Cilegon Education and Culture Office, Heni Anita Susila, fully supports the Mayor’s initiative as an effort to expand educational access for the community. She said the Education and Culture Office is currently preparing various technical aspects so the programme can run optimally from its inception. “Regarding the Mayor’s policy plan on the free private school programme, the Cilegon Education and Culture Office strongly supports this initiative as an effort to increase the accessibility of education in Cilegon,” Heni said. Heni stated that her office is currently drafting Technical Guidelines as a reference for programme implementation while conducting a budget needs analysis so the policy can run sustainably. “We are drafting comprehensive technical guidelines so that the programme implementation later runs smoothly and is well targeted. In addition, we are also carefully calculating the budget requirements so this programme is sustainable.” In the near future, the Education and Culture Office will also hold a coordination meeting with the Private School Principals’ Working Conference and the Regional Government Budget Team. This step is taken to absorb input from schools while finalising the budgeting aspects. “We want to ensure this programme not only provides free education for the community but also maintains the quality of education in the private schools that are part of the programme,” Heni said. Through this programme, the Cilegon City Government hopes to deliver more equitable access to education, reduce the economic burden on the community, and strengthen human resource development as a foundation towards a more advanced and competitive Cilegon City.