Basudiwa Supraja, Antara, Jakarta – The Indonesian government will launch 100 free boarding schools across the country on July 14 to support children from the nation's poorest households, Social Affairs Minister Saifullah Yusuf announced on Saturday.
The initiative, known as Sekolah Rakyat (People's Schools), is part of President Prabowo Subianto's broader campaign to eradicate extreme poverty by providing free education, meals, and housing for underprivileged children.
"The program is set to launch on July 14, beginning with medical screenings for prospective students," Saifullah said in Jakarta.
In preparation for the rollout, the government has appointed 1,469 teachers and trained nearly 100 headmasters to lead the schools. The initial phase will accommodate approximately 9,700 students.
Each school will offer free education from elementary through high school, along with dormitory housing and three nutritious meals per day. The program is fully funded by the central government and supported by local governments and private sector partners.
Once operational, every campus will include a standardized kitchen to ensure consistent meal quality under the national free meal initiative for school-aged children.
Saifullah added that the government is currently surveying an additional 100 sites for the program's second phase. Forty of these sites have already been approved by the Public Works Ministry for minor renovations to convert them into boarding school facilities.
"In the next phase, we will again recruit headmasters and teachers, and begin the enrollment process for new students," he said.
The schools will follow the national education curriculum used in public schools, with added emphasis on civic education and nationalism. Saifullah noted that the curriculum will be flexible to accommodate students of varying ages and educational backgrounds.
"These boarding schools are fully funded by the government and designed to ensure that no child is left behind because of poverty," he said.