Seven Banten High Schools Withdraw from Free Education Programme, Governor Assures Enrolled Students Will Not Be Affected

Banten Governor Andra Soni has responded to the withdrawal of seven senior high schools from the province’s free education programme. He confirmed that students who enrolled last year will continue to receive funding from the regional government, even though their schools have opted out this year.

He explained that the policy is enshrined in a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the Banten Provincial Government and the private schools. “In the MoU, it is stated that the school is ready to implement the programme for one full cohort. So, if they are unwilling to participate for the second cohort, they are still obliged to facilitate the first cohort until completion,” Andra said in Serang on Monday (3/8/2026).

“If they do not wish to continue, that only applies to the next cohort. So, the cohort that has already started schooling there remains covered,” Andra added. He guaranteed that students who joined the Free School Programme last year will receive their rights until they graduate. He stressed that private senior high schools, vocational schools, and special needs schools are not allowed to collect fees from these students.

“We bind them through the MoU. This concerns the sustainability of the programme. It is not possible for them to join at the start and then simply stop midway. From the beginning, there has been an MoU that was mutually agreed upon,” he said. Andra noted that several other private schools are currently interested in joining the Free School Programme. The provincial government will curate and select these schools. “At the moment, there are around 50 schools that have applied, but we are still curating them,” he stated.

Previously, the Banten Education and Culture Agency revealed that approximately seven private high schools wished to withdraw from the Free School Programme. The schools had submitted official letters to the agency for follow-up. “We are currently recapping the data. There are about seven schools that are withdrawing,” said Rachmat Tamam, Secretary of the Banten Education and Culture Agency, on Friday (24 July). In 2025, 801 high schools, vocational schools, and special needs schools participated in the programme. If seven schools withdraw, 794 schools will remain in the programme in 2026. Rachmat has not yet explained the reasons for the schools’ withdrawal. “We will also need to look at the letters, to see what their reasons are,” he said.