Dinda Shabrina, Jakarta – President Prabowo Subianto claimed that the allocation for the education budget receives the largest portion in the State Revenue and Expenditure Budget (APBN).
"Actually, the political elites of Indonesia have made a political decision for massive investment in the field of education," he said at the National Teacher's Day event in Indonesia Arena, Gelora Bung Karno, Senayan, South Jakarta, on Friday, November 28, 2025.
The head of state said that, according to existing rules, the education sector should receive a 20 percent portion of the APBN. "If I'm not mistaken, it's already more than 20 percent of the total that we deploy [for education]," he stated.
In his welcoming speech, Prabowo compared Indonesia's education budget allocation with that of other nations. He mentioned neighboring countries, which, according to him, do not allocate as much budget to education as Indonesia does.
"Certain countries prioritize defense spending. This can be seen in India, Pakistan, and even Singapore. Moreover, in the United States, defense spending is at the top in many of those countries," he said.
2025 budget allocation contradicts claim
However, based on previous data regarding the 2025 APBN, the total budget allocated for the function of Education, which includes transfers to regions, is constitutionally mandated at 20% of the total budget. When viewing allocations per Ministry/Institution (K/L), the Ministry of Defense ranks first, contradicting the President's claim.
The Ministry of Defense ranks first with the largest estimated spending outlook in 2025, set at Rp247.5 trillion. This figure is substantially up from the original APBN allocation of Rp166.3 trillion.
Here are the 15 Ministries and Institutions with the largest budgets in 2025 after undergoing amendments:
- Ministry of Defense: Rp247.5 trillion, up from the original Rp166.3 trillion.
- National Police: Rp138.5 trillion, up from the original Rp126.6 trillion.
- National Nutrition Agency (BGN): Rp116.6 trillion, up from the original Rp71 trillion.
- Ministry of Health: Rp86.1 trillion, down from the original Rp105.6 trillion.
- Ministry of Public Works: Rp85.7 trillion, down from the original Rp111 trillion.
- Ministry of Social Affairs: Rp79.6 trillion, the same as the original Rp79.6 trillion.
- Ministry of Finance: Rp71.5 trillion, up from the original Rp53.2 trillion.
- Ministry of Religious Affairs: Rp69.8 trillion, down from the original Rp78.6 trillion.
- Ministry of Higher Education, Research, and Technology: Rp52.9 trillion, down from the original Rp57.7 trillion.
- Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education: Rp47 trillion, up from the original Rp33.5 trillion.
- Ministry of Agriculture: Rp27.3 trillion, down from the original Rp29.4 trillion.
- Attorney General's Office: Rp24 trillion, down from the original Rp24.3 trillion.
- Ministry of Transportation: Rp23.1 trillion, down from the original Rp31.5 trillion.
- State Intelligence Agency (BIN): Rp15.4 trillion, up from the original Rp7 trillion.
- Ministry of Immigration and Corrections: Rp15.1 trillion, down from the original Rp16 trillion.
– Melynda Dwi Puspita contributed to the report.