Jakarta. Indonesia has proposed an Rp820.9 trillion ($46 billion) education budget for 2027, a 13.9% increase from this year, with funding earmarked for student assistance, teacher welfare, school infrastructure and President Prabowo Subianto’s flagship Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program.

Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa said the allocation would support efforts to improve the quality and competitiveness of Indonesia’s workforce. The proposed education budget is up from an estimated Rp720.8 trillion in 2026 and Rp656.6 trillion in 2025.

“Under the 1945 Constitution, the state is required to allocate at least 20% of the national budget to education. We will implement that requirement in 2027,” Purbaya said at a press conference in Jakarta on Friday.

Indonesia has proposed Rp4,097.2 trillion in total government spending for 2027 under its draft state budget.

What Will the Education Budget Fund?
Purbaya said the 2027 education allocation would cover a broad range of programs, including scholarships and student assistance, teacher allowances, school construction and renovation, as well as the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program.

The government plans to provide the Indonesia Smart Program (PIP) to 22.1 million students and Indonesia Smart College Card (KIP Kuliah) assistance to 1.1 million university students.

The budget also includes:

• Professional allowances for 1.3 million non-civil-service teachers

• Professional allowances for 1.7 million regional civil-service teachers

• Construction of seven Garuda Superior Schools

• Renovation of 12,215 schools and Islamic schools

• Construction of 100 People's Schools and operations for another 166

• School operational assistance for 54.2 million students

• Early childhood education operational assistance for 6.3 million children

• Additional income allowances for 20,700 regional teachers

• Funding for 148 museums and cultural parks

• LPDP scholarships

The government says the overall objective is to expand access to education and improve human capital, a key priority as Indonesia seeks to move toward higher-value industries and faster economic growth.

MBG Funding Still Included in Education Budget
The Constitutional Court ruled in July that the government must stop financing the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program through the education budget, saying the program does not constitute core education spending. The ruling requires the government to separate MBG funding from the education budget no later than the 2028 budget.

MBG has become one of the largest new spending programs under Prabowo, who launched it in 2025 as a centerpiece of his administration’s social policy. The program was originally designed to provide meals to as many as 83 million schoolchildren, pregnant women and other beneficiaries.

Chief Food Affairs Minister Zulkifli Hasan said the program's provisional 2027 allocation stands at Rp240 trillion, with the number of beneficiaries expected to reach around 70 million people.

The figure remains subject to adjustment as the government reviews the program's implementation and expands the capacity of its food-service network.

Zulkifli said about 7,000 MBG kitchens, also known as SPPGs, are currently being upgraded. Facilities that do not obtain the required hygiene and sanitation certification within the government's deadline could face closure.

The government has previously adjusted MBG's budget and implementation plans as it sought to balance the program's expansion with broader fiscal constraints.

The court's ruling means that, while MBG can continue to receive public funding, its financing will eventually have to be separated from the constitutionally mandated education allocation. The government has said it will comply with the ruling and implement the separation through the 2028 budget at the latest.

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