Layoff Victims Urged to Enrol in National Vocational Programme with Rp2.12 Trillion Budget

Government has officially set the implementation of the National Vocational Programme for the second semester of 2026, with a budget of Rp2.12 trillion.

Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto stated that the vocational training programme targets 220,000 SMK graduates and 50,000 laid-off workers.

“The National Vocational Programme aims to train 220,000 SMK graduates and 50,000 laid-off workers with a budget of Rp2.12 trillion,” Airlangga said at his office in Jakarta on Tuesday, May 26, 2026.

Previously, Manpower Minister Yassierli said the 2026 National Vocational Training Programme (PVN) is designed to equip participants with skills aligned with industry needs and prepare them for employment.

According to Yassierli, the training scheme will focus on the requirements of Special Economic Zones (KEK) and National Strategic Projects (PSN), utilising the existing 25 KEKs.

“We want our vocational training, including internships, to be more aligned and closer to the needs of KEKs or PSNs,” Yassierli said last month.

Yassierli acknowledged that there has been a mismatch between training provided by labour training centres and the needs of certain KEKs. Therefore, adjustments to the training are expected to be more targeted.

“We have mapped out what can be done moving forward, more concrete and collaborative. We’ve already mapped it out. Some KEKs say, ‘we need training in this direction,’ but the labour ministry’s training centres aren’t fully ready or are too far from our needs,” he said.