Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education accelerates data collection for earthquake-damaged schools in NTT
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education (Kemendikdasmen) is continuing to accelerate the data collection of educational units affected by the earthquake disaster in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) Province.
The Minister of Primary and Secondary Education, Abdul Mu’ti, stated in Central Jakarta on Friday that he is maintaining constant communication with the Governor of NTT to ensure that the data collection process ensures aid is distributed accurately.
“The safety of the school community is our priority, and we will oversee the educational recovery process alongside the local government until learning can resume safely and comfortably,” he said.
The Ministry noted that as of 16 August, 253 educational units have been affected, consisting of 199 units at the PAUD/TK, SD, SMP, and SKB levels (under regency authority) and 54 units at the SMA/SMK/SLB levels (under provincial authority).
This figure, he noted, includes New Classrooms resulting from the 2026 Revitalisation programme, such as SDN Wae Wulan and SDI Lengko Randang.
To date, the Education Quality Assurance Agency (BPMP) and the Agency for Teachers and Education Personnel (BGTK), acting as disaster management hubs on the ground, are continuously conducting the data collection and damage assessment processes.
“In addition to building damage, the earthquake disaster also claimed lives within the school community, specifically two students and one teacher,” he said.
“We are also preparing psychosocial support through cooperation with HIMPSI (Indonesian Psychological Association). These services will be deployed as soon as the preliminary team provides confirmation of the field conditions,” Mu’ti added.
“The next step is to encourage the cleaning of schools that are still safe to use and to coordinate the use of additional budget allocations for the needs of learning facilities and equipment,” he further explained.
Furthermore, as a rapid response to maintain learning continuity while prioritising the safety of the school community, Kemendakdasmen is preparing 50 Emergency Classroom Tents, which will be deployed via two expedition clusters.
In addition to physical aid, the Ministry is preparing connectivity support through Starlink for areas experiencing electricity and communication network disruptions.
“Cross-directorate teams within the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education have also begun moving into the field to accelerate assessments, damage verification, and the coordination of educational service recovery,” said Mu’ti.
For the record, the first stage involves sending 30 tents from storage in Jakarta and Yogyakarta to the Port of Labuan Bajo.
The shipment also includes 1,000 Family Kit packages, 200 general school kit packages, and 2,000 SMA/SMK school kit packages to support the needs of the school community in the Manggarai, East Manggarai, and West Manggarai Regencies.