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RI vocational education system needs improvement
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Great support: Industry Minister Airlangga Hartarto talks with school students attending the launch of the Industry Vocational Education program for Central Java and Yogyakarta in Bawen, Semarang regency, on April 21. (Antara/Aditya Pradana Putra)
T
he government should overhaul Indonesia’s vocational education system so it is able to accommodate the demands of skilled workers in the country’s industries, a senior minister said.
Coordinating Economic Minister Darmin Nasution further said that the government also needed to better prepare vocational school graduates so they were ready and competent enough to join with the country’s workforce.
“We have had all this time to come to the conclusion that Indonesia’s vocational schools do not have a clear focus,” said Darmin on Thursday during the launch of a book entitled Policies of Educational School Development in Indonesia for 2017-2025.
The minister praised vocational workshops that had been held; however, he expressed concern that most vocational school graduates still needed to attend such workshops.
“When we asked them [the graduates], they said their employers had ordered them to attend those workshops because they were considered to be lacking in skills.”
Darmin said vocational education in Indonesia should be focused on agribusiness, tourism, healthcare, e-commerce and domestic services.
He added that vocational school graduates should be well-equipped with entrepreneurship skills.
Darmin hoped the book could be used as a reference by the government to improve the vocational education system.
According to data, 144 concentrations are recorded to have been offered in vocational high schools in 2016. The five most popular concentrations, which were selected by 54 percent of vocational high school students, were: computer and network engineering, light vehicle engineering, accounting, office administration and motorcycle engineering. (ami/ebf)
