President Prabowo Orders Education Minister to Form Team to Evaluate School Textbooks

President Prabowo Subianto has instructed Minister of Basic and Secondary Education Abdul Mu’ti to immediately form a team to study and re-evaluate the textbooks currently used in schools. The order was given during a limited meeting lasting more than two hours at Merdeka Palace, Jakarta, on Thursday, which was also attended by Minister of State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi and Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya.

“He (the Minister) was tasked (by the President) to form a team as soon as possible to study the teaching materials or textbooks for all our students, which must be adapted to the developments of the times and technology. We do not want to be left behind by foreign textbooks,” said Minister of State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi, who also serves as Presidential Spokesperson, during a press conference with Minister Abdul Mu’ti after the meeting.

He explained that President Prabowo highlighted various issues related to education during the meeting, ranging from infrastructure and school revitalisation to teacher welfare. “I want to underline that the discussion, which lasted almost more than two hours, showed the government and the President are very concerned about educational issues, both regarding infrastructure and improving teacher welfare and quality,” he stated.

He announced that 11,744 educational units have been allocated for revitalisation in 2026. “The revitalisation for 2026 is already underway, 70 percent of the allocation of 11,744 units has commenced, and some will even be completed in July and August to be inaugurated for the 2026-2027 academic year,” he said.

According to Minister Abdul Mu’ti, the revitalisation has been well received by the public, considering many schools had been damaged and not renovated for decades. “We visited the regions, especially the frontier, outermost, and disadvantaged areas, and they are very grateful because, although by law the responsibility for construction lies with local governments, due to the President’s commitment to improving the quality of education, we are revitalising these schools, both public and private, across Indonesia,” he said.