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inistries are offering rewards in the form of anything from financial aid, scholarships to civil servant
status, to health and education workers willing to be stationed at remote areas to overcome manpower shortages.

“Conditions tend to be tougher [in remote areas]. Teachers are scarce and that’s why we want to make sure that those who are dedicated enough to work there are given adequate financial support,” National Education Ministry director general for quality improvement Baedowi said Thursday.

He added that, overall, Indonesia currently had a satisfactory teacher to student ratio but that the teachers were concentrated in more developed areas.

“[The number of teachers] is more than enough. The ratio of primary school teachers to students is one to 19, while the national standard is at least one to 20 and one to 32 at the most. But they are not well distributed,” Baedowi said.

He added that the ratio of junior high and senior high teachers to students was one to 17 and one to 15 respectively.

The central government is offering support to teachers in remote areas by giving them financial incentives to “boost their motivation”, such as a Rp 1.3 million grant for public school teachers who have attained civil servant status and Rp 200,000 for those who have not.

However, the regional authorities are ultimately responsible for the distribution, Baedowi said.

“Regional autonomy is aimed at easing problems of [distribution], but the fact remains [that teachers are still not well-distributed],” he said.

However, the issue with health workers revolves around both the number and distribution.

“We still lack the sufficient number of healthcare workers,” Kemas M Akib, the Health Ministry’s head of health worker planning and management center, said.

He added that the country currently had around 85,000 general practitioners and 35,000 specialist doctors.

Akib said his ministry was aiming for a doctor to patient ratio of 30 to 100,000. The current ratio is 25 to 100,000.

Proper distribution is being held back in part because newly graduated medical students were often reluctant to return to their home villages and preferred to work in cities due to better working conditions, he said.

He added that the ministry had been working with 13 medical schools in the country to hand out scholarships to those studying for specialist degrees if they were willing to serve six months in designated regions.

During the Soeharto era, medical students were required to serve in various regions for a designated period after graduation. “However, we can no longer force doctors do that,” Akib said.

Menaldi Rasmin from the Indonesian Medical Council said doctors needed several assurances to work effectively in remote areas.

“First, they need to be sure that they can continue their education at a higher level [after their service]. Second, they need secure facilities,” he said.

Health Ministry secretary-general Ratna Rosita Hendardji said the government planned to send healthcare teams consisting of doctors, sanitarians, nutritionists, midwives and pharmacists to the regions, news portal kompas.com reported.

Indonesia’s remote regions have poor public health records, including high maternal and infant mortality rates, as well as other poor social conditions such as a lack of teachers and schools.