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Indonesia to have State Perpetual Education Fund
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Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati (Antara Photo/Agung Rajasa)
I
ndonesia is set to have a State Perpetual Education Fund, an upgrade of the Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP) currently managed by the Finance Ministry, according to an official.
“In the next two weeks, we will present the plan in detail," Finance Minister Sri Mulyani said at the Bogor Palace in West Java on Wednesday, after a cabinet meeting discussing the upgrade.
The LPDP was established in 2011. The ministry allocated Rp 10.5 trillion (US$175 million) for the fund this year and Rp 15 trillion for 2018.
As of November 2017, the LPDP has collected around Rp 20 trillion in perpetual funds, plus a Rp 6.4 trillion yield from the investment within the last three years.
About 50 percent of the funds is invested in government bonds, 10 percent in corporate bonds and the remaining 40 percent as bank deposits.
The LPDP has provided scholarship to 18,400 students, around 11,000 of whom are now pursuing their master’s and doctoral degrees. Meanwhile, 51 percent of the scholarship recipients furthered their education abroad.
Sri Mulyani added that with the new status, the LPDP would receive its funds directly from the state budget instead of the Finance Ministry's budget.
"If we allocate Rp 20 trillion per year, we will have Rp 200 trillion by 2025,” she said, adding that his ministry would evaluate the implementation of the LPDP program. (bbn)
