Indonesia expands Sekolah Rakyat program to boost education for poor children

The Indonesian Ministry of Social Affairs is producing a 25‑minute short film on the Sekolah Rakyat (People's School) program, a boarding‑school initiative aimed at children from extreme‑poor families. Deputy Minister Agus Jabo Priyono said the film will illustrate how the program helps families move "from darkness to light" and will be used to raise public awareness.

Sekolah Rakyat targets students from the poorest socioeconomic brackets (DTSEN deciles 1 and 2), offering free, geographically unrestricted education. The program is presented as a concrete implementation of Article 33 of the 1945 Constitution, seeking to break structural poverty and fulfill the state’s social‑justice mandate. According to the ministry, around four million children still lack access to education due to economic hardship, and the initiative is expected to serve as a bridge to a better future for these youths.