Unfortunately, his long vision is not supported by a clear and strong road map, which could undermine the goal of building a nation that is as good, intelligent and smart as any of the best in the world.

In his Aug. 15 State of the Nation and budget speeches, Prabowo listed education among the eight top priority programs for 2026, and he is allocating Rp 758 trillion (US$46 billion) for the sector, which is a historic high.

His vision of education can be discerned from his new school concepts, which he passionately talked about in the speeches. We have a president who is as invested in human development as his predecessor Joko “Jokowi” Widodo was in developing economic infrastructure.

The Sekolah Rakyat (community school) is a free boarding school covering primary and secondary education for children from the poorest families. Education can break these families out of the cycle of poverty, so the President believes. More than 100 have already been set up so far. The target is to provide schooling for up to 500,000 children by 2029.

The Garuda School is established for the most talented children in the country, with preference given to the poor. These schools will excel in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), grooming children to enter the best colleges around the world. The target is to have at least one such school in every province by 2029.

The government is also increasing the number of Taruna Nusantara senior high schools, a military-style boarding school that teaches discipline, leadership and character. Many of the nation’s future leaders will no doubt come from these schools.

An important part of Prabowo’s education vision is the free nutritious meal program rolled out in January targeting all 83 million schoolchildren as part of the government fight against stunting. Citing the United Nations, Prabowo said the program is the best investment any nation can make for its own future.

Prabowo’s heart is in the right place but here is the rub: All these great and ambitious concepts require not only funding, but also effective and efficient administration. The country has not enough of either.

There is only so much money in the pot, even if the government says it is allocating 20 percent of its yearly budget to education as mandated by the Constitution.

Spending on the free meals program, at Rp 335 trillion (US$2.03 billion), already takes out 44 percent of the education fund earmarked for 2026. The government is actually spending less on education next year if we exclude the free meals, which should really come out of the health budget.

Other education programs will have to compete for the remaining funds. Most likely they will be apportioned according to the President’s priorities.

A major problem with Prabowo’s education road map is that these new schools are managed by different ministries: Sekolah Rakyat by the Social Services Ministry, Garuda Schools by the Higher Education, Science and Technology Ministry and Taruna Nusantara by the Defense Ministry. They will prevail over the Primary and Secondary Education Ministry, which administers most schools in the country, but are not the President’s top priority. The education funding landscape is already muddled as it is because the Religious Affairs Ministry runs the madrassas and pesantren (Islamic boarding schools).

We commend President Prabowo for his grand visions on education, but we urge him not to neglect long-standing problems in national education, from the poor state of schools and lack of modern facilities to the qualifications of teachers and their welfare. Teachers are still among the lowest paid professionals in the country.

As the saying goes, the road to hell is paved with good intentions. Good intentions alone are not enough to achieve a noble goal and the unintended consequences may be dire. A clear and strong road map can help the President achieve his vision of a great nation through a strong education system.