Is It True That Many Daycares Are Unlicensed?

A case of violence at the Little Aresha daycare in Yogyakarta City, which came to light on Friday (24/4/2026), has captured public attention. The violence occurred at a place that should be safe for parents to entrust their children. On the other hand, the need for daycare services among parents has been steadily increasing in recent years. Based on data from the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection (Kementerian PPPA), around 75% of families in Indonesia currently use alternative childcare. However, the mushrooming of childcare facilities has not been matched by the issuance of permits. Republika investigated several daycares in Depok City on Monday (27/4/2026) to look into the matter. Using the Google Maps application, the existence of daycares in the capital’s buffer zone can be easily found. After monitoring several daycares, Republika then visited one in the area. The staff at the daycare welcomed Republika’s arrival warmly. She explained that the daycare where she works operates every working day from 06:30 to 20:00 WIB. In addition to being a childcare facility, the daycare also provides pre-school and bimba services. Children entrusted there will automatically receive education services according to their age. “The cost starts from Rp 1.5 million. That does not include registration of Rp 500,000 and meals of Rp 350,000 (per month),” said the staff. She explained that children entrusted at the facility will receive two meals a day in the afternoon and evening. In addition, children will also get one snack a day. Meanwhile, the activities offered at the daycare range from breakfast, pre-school, lunch, nap time, dinner, bathing, and group activities. She claimed that the daycare where she works already has a permit. However, she did not mention what permit the daycare has. The daycare is also equipped with CCTV. Nevertheless, the CCTV available cannot yet be accessed by parents. The CCTV can only be accessed by the foundation’s owner. “As a substitute, we facilitate an application. There are activities and child development updates in it,” she said. The staff added that the caregivers at her daycare have also undergone various trainings. This means every caregiver has been prepared to handle children. “Here, one caregiver handles a maximum of four children,” she said. At that place, Republika was also taken on a tour to see the daycare area. Several caregivers were still feeding some children having lunch. Meanwhile, some other children were napping together. She mentioned that currently there are 13 children entrusted at the daycare. Previously, there were 20 children entrusted there, but some have entered primary school age, so they have left. “Because here the maximum age is 7 years,” she said. She revealed that children newly entrusted at the daycare must first adapt. In the first week, the child usually cries whenever left by their parents. The daycare also has a “trial” programme for parents planning to entrust their child. This means children can be entrusted for adaptation with a daily fee. “Because we’re afraid that if they take the monthly package, the child might not like it,” she said.