Jogja City Government Claims Interest in State Primary Schools Rises, 97% Capacity Filled
The Yogyakarta City Education, Youth, and Sports Office (Dindikpora) claims that public interest in enrolling children in public primary schools has increased for the 2026 New Student Admission System (SPMB). Dindikpora stated that, based on preliminary data, the occupancy of capacity in public schools has already reached 97 per cent.
This was revealed by the Head of Dindikpora Yogyakarta, Budi Santosa Asrori. He explained that the SPMB recapitulation process is still ongoing, so the overall data is not yet final. Nevertheless, he noted that the current trend indicates an increase.
“This is already good, hopefully, it will continue to rise. Interest is increasing now. However, the data is not yet complete, so I cannot draw a final conclusion, but God willing, it is increasing compared to last year,” Bidd said when contacted on Friday (26/06/2026).
According to Budi, based on preliminary data, 35 large primary schools using the Real Time Online (RTO) system have filled approximately 97 per cent of their capacity. Consequently, the number of unfilled seats is estimated to be less than three per cent.
“The capacity of these 35 large schools is 97 per cent filled via RTO. For those using RTO, the empty seats are less than 3 per cent. Therefore, very few remain unfilled,” he said.
When asked about the exact percentage of increase compared to last year, Budi admitted he could not provide a precise figure. However, he remains optimistic that the increase is significant.
“What is clear is that there is a temporary increase. The final data is not yet available, but the online registrations have reached 97 per cent of the total capacity,” he added.
Budi also clarified rumours circulating that only 1,000 out of the 3,600–3,700 available seats in Yogyakarta’s public primary schools had been filled. He clarified that those figures pertained to last year’s admission data, not the current year’s implementation.
“That (data) was from last year,” he explained briefly.
On the other hand, Budi did not deny that many parents prefer enrolling their children in private primary schools. Therefore, the Yogyakarta City Dindikpora is making efforts to improve the quality of public primary schools.
“The higher the income and education level, the more parents tend to prefer private schools. This is because of what they seek: religious education and high-quality learning that yields good results,” he said.
“We are also striving to ensure that government-run schools can improve their quality. We are providing various activities, enhancing character education, and improving academic quality so that the standard of primary education continues to rise,” he concluded.