National Internship Programme Caps Positions at 20% of Company Workforce

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - The Minister of Manpower, Yassierli, has ensured that the government will closely monitor the implementation of the 2026 National Internship Programme. In addition to increasing the participant quota to 150,000 people, the government will also screen the internship positions offered by companies to ensure they do not merely become administrative tasks that do not align with the competencies of university graduates.

However, this increase in quota does not mean that positions within companies will expand indefinitely. Yassierly emphasised that the available quota in companies will be maintained to prevent future issues.

Yassierli stated that the National Internship Programme quota for this year has been increased to 150,000 participants, up from 100,000 participants in the previous year. According to him, the enthusiasm from both companies and university graduates towards the programme continues to rise.

“Alhamdulillah, this year, in accordance with the President’s (Prabowo Subianto) direction, we have secured a quota for 150,000 people. This is extraordinary; last year it was 100,000, and now it is 150,000,” Yassierli said during the Economic Updates on CNBC Indonesia, Friday (3/7/2026).

He revealed that many companies have begun enquiring about the programme’s opening schedule, while interest from university graduates is also growing.

“I have already shared our evaluation results; enthusiasm from companies is high, with them asking us, ‘when will it open again?’. I also hear our university graduates saying, ‘okay, if it’s like this, it’s interesting, I want to join too,’ and so on. God willing, our internship schedule will commence on 10 August,” he said.

Maximum 20%

Currently, he noted, the programme is entering the company registration phase. During the first two weeks of July 2026, companies can offer internship positions which will later be selected by participants. Applicants can then choose vacancies between 15-28 July 2026, before companies undergo the selection process.

Yassierli explained that the government will also limit the number of interns in each company. The maximum quota for participants is only 20% of the number of organic employees, to ensure the programme is not misused as a replacement for permanent labour.

“It is limited to a maximum of 20% of the organic workforce. We do not want a situation where a company says, ‘we are recruiting 1,000 [interns],’ just because the pocket money is covered by the government. We will oversee both the quantity and the positions,” he said.

In addition to limiting the number of participants, the Ministry of Manpower will also screen the internship positions submitted by companies. According to Yassierli, positions that do not match the competencies of university graduates will not be approved.

“For example, if it is for a receptionist role, we will say ‘no’. These are Bachelor’s degree graduates; they are trained in analytical thinking and so on, at a certain competency level. Therefore, we will screen the internship positions, including what tasks they will perform. Companies must register along with a job description,” Yassierli explained.

He added that the government wants to ensure every participant gains relevant work experience that leads to competency certification.

“Ultimately, it is expected that these interns will obtain certification in their respective vocations. We will oversee this,” he said.

On the other hand, the government also wants the distribution of interns to be decentralised rather than concentrated in Jakarta. Therefore, the Ministry of Manpower is collaborating with regional manpower offices to encourage more companies to join the programme.

“We want the distribution to be even. We do not want it to pile up in Jakarta, as we want the benefits of this programme to be felt across all regions of Indonesia,” he said.

“We are encouraging our colleagues at the Manpower Offices, saying, ‘if there are companies that need interns, please join this programme,’ so that we can direct our students to be well-distributed,” he added.

Yassierli is optimistic that the number of participating companies will increase this year. As a reference, approximately 8,000 companies and institutions participated in the inaugural implementation of the National Internship Programme last year.

“Last year, about 8,000 companies and institutions were involved, and we are confident there will be more. Last year was the first year, so people might have been in a ‘wait and see’ mode, wondering if the government would actually pay. But seeing that it is real, we are confident the demand will be high, providing our students with more options,” Yassierli concluded.