Jakarta. The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) has launched an investigation into alleged corruption in the Education Ministry’s Rp 10 trillion ($615 million) Chromebook procurement project, which was intended to support the digitalization of schools nationwide between 2019 and 2023.

AGO spokesman Harli Siregar said on Monday that the large-scale procurement involved thousands of Chromebook laptops purchased for public schools across Indonesia. However, many of the devices have proven to be ineffective, particularly in regions lacking reliable internet access.

“There are strong indications of a conspiracy in the procurement process,” Harli said at a press conference in Jakarta. “Roughly 1,000 Chromebooks had previously been tested and showed poor performance, yet the procurement went ahead.”

Incompatibility and Potential Waste
Chromebooks rely on stable internet connections to function properly -- a challenge in many remote areas where schools lack adequate connectivity.

“Spending such a massive sum of public money on devices that don’t match the actual needs of students raises serious red flags,” Harli added.
“There may have been manipulation and forced procurement, leading to significant waste of state funds.”

The AGO is now summoning government officials and private company representatives involved in the project for questioning. Harli declined to name specific individuals or entities at this stage of the investigation.

The procurement was carried out during the tenure of former Education Minister Nadiem Makarim, who served under President Joko Widodo’s administration.

Following the inauguration of President Prabowo Subianto in October 2024, the Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Ministry was restructured into multiple entities overseeing primary and secondary education, higher education, culture, and research and technology.