Ibas pushes for quality-oriented education budget discussions
Deputy Speaker of the MPR Edhie Baskoro Yudhoyono, or Ibas, is pushing for discussions on the education budget in the 2027 State Budget Draft (RAPBN) to be oriented towards improving the quality of learning.
According to him, education is a long-term investment for Indonesia’s future, so the success of the education budget needs to be measured by its impact on students, teachers, schools, and the equal distribution of educational opportunities.
“The measure of a budget’s success is not just how much is spent, but how many children’s futures we manage to change,” Ibas said in his statement in Jakarta on Thursday.
He said every rupiah allocated through the state budget must have clear benefits for the people. In the education sector, the measure of a budget’s success cannot be seen solely from the absorption rate.
“The question is simple: are children learning better, are teachers stronger, are schools safer, and do children from underprivileged families have the same opportunities?” he said.
Ibas appreciated the government’s move to make education a budget priority, including through the school revitalisation programme. However, he reminded that revitalisation should not only focus on the physical construction of schools.
Quality schools, he added, also require competent teachers and head teachers, a relevant curriculum, strengthened literacy and numeracy, the use of technology, and a safe learning environment.
In addition, he encouraged school revitalisation to be carried out based on data so that government interventions can be prioritised for regions and educational units that need them most.
He also stressed the importance of improving teacher welfare, which must go hand in hand with improving competence. According to him, teachers must be both an investment and the main driver of improving learning quality.
Furthermore, Ibas said the education system needs to prepare the younger generation to face the development of artificial intelligence.
He assessed that education is not enough to teach the use of technology, but must also strengthen critical thinking skills, creativity, and ethics so that Indonesia is able to produce innovators and job creators.
“We do not want Indonesia’s generation to only become users of technology. We want them to become creators of technology. Not just looking for work, but able to create work,” he said.
The state budget, Ibas added, must be seen as a tool of struggle to improve the quality of people’s lives. Therefore, the discussion of the 2027 State Budget Draft, particularly on education, must ensure that every policy and budget has a measurable impact.
“The state budget is not just numbers. The state budget is a tool of struggle to protect the people, strengthen the nation, and deliver a better life,” he said.