The Netherlands supports Indonesia in its efforts to improve the access and quality of education, thereby contributing to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the Education for All (EFA) goals in Indonesia.

Basic Education

The Government of Indonesia gives high priority to the improvement of the quality of its education system. This is, among others, reflected in the substantial increase of its annual budget for the education sector. In 2009 21% of the national budget is set aside for education. The intentions, priorities and education strategies are laid down in the National Education Strategic Plan 2005-2009 (Renstra), which was approved by Parliament. It is clear from the Renstra that significant external additional funding will be required to meet the objectives. Hence, since 2006, the Netherlands’ support to basic education has increased and broadened in scope. Currently, the Netherlands supports the following education programmes in Indonesia:

• Decentralized Basic Education Project, through the Asian Development in 2006. Dutch funding to this programme of EUR 23 million made it possible to expand the programme with six districts in the province of Nusa Tenggara Timur (NTT).

Launching of  DBEP, August 2006 by Ambassador, Dr. Nikolaos van Dam, and Governor NTT,  MoNE en Bappenas, Kupang

• In cooperation with the International Labour Organization (ILO), the Netherlands supports, with an amount of EUR 18,8 million, a programme for the improvement and extension of vocational and technical education in six provinces in Eastern Indonesia.
• With a contribution of EUR 21 million, channelled through the World Bank, the Netherlands supports the Early Childhood Education and Development Programme, which aims to improve poor children’s development and readiness for further education.

Jeneponto, South Sulawesi, 2008	Community participation

• Since the end of 2006, a Dutch Basic Education Trust Fund of EUR 24 million, implemented through the World Bank is supporting preparatory policy activities (studies, pilots and reviews) in the field of teacher management, certification, ICT, general and vocational education, and monitoring and evaluation of government’s programmes, including the BOS programme for direct financial support to schools.

Launching of the BOS – KITA programme, December  2008 by Deputy Head of Mission, Dr. Ad Koekkoek, and World Bank  Managing Director Mr. Maboub

• The Basic Education Capacity Trust Fund is co-funded by the EC and the Netherlands, with EUR 22 million each, and implemented by the World Bank. The programme aims to strengthen the capacity of (local) government in the field of improving governance on transparency and accountability and information systems in the education sector.
• With a contribution of EUR 42 million the Netherlands, together with the World Bank, supports a national programme to improve the overall quality and performance of teachers in Indonesia through enhancing teachers’ knowledge and subject matter and pedagogical skills in the classroom.
• Through UNICEF, the Netherlands supports a programme for HIV/Aids Prevention and Care in education, which aims to raise awareness of young people and adolescents in Papua. The Netherlands support to this programme is EURO 3,8 million.

In Indonesia, the Netherlands plays an active role in coordination and harmonization of donor interventions in the education sector. There is close consultation between the relevant ministries and donors on which areas for special attention foreign support could be effective and efficient.

Higher Education

The cooperation in higher education and science builds upon a long tradition of cooperative relations between Netherlands and Indonesia. There are many institutional relations between Dutch and Indonesian universities, and there are also a number of programmes that facilitate these relations:

The Scientific Programme Indonesia – The Netherlands (SPIN) is managed by the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Science in the Netherlands ( KNAW). The Embassy has a facilitating role. Besides, there are ongoing academic research activities which are, on the Dutch side, coordinated by  WOTRO/NWO.
The  Netherlands Education Support Office (NESO) functions as the information centre on higher education in the Netherlands and Indonesia; it facilitates exchange programmes and coordinates the Netherlands’ fellowship programmes. In 2000 the StuNed scholarship programme started. The programme, for which EUR 30,8 million is available for the period 2006-2011, aims at offering scholarships for professionals: government officials, staff from universities and private organisations, including NGOs, to follow master programmes, short courses or tailor made training, all conducted in the English language in the Netherlands.
The acquired knowledge and skills will be deployed for the benefit of the social-economic development of Indonesia.
For further information on StuNed and other programmes for study in the Netherlands as well for academic cooperation, please consult the website of NESO     NESO.
NESO also organises the annual Netherlands Higher Education Fair (HEF) where Dutch universities present their programmes.

In 2005, the programme for Institutional Cooperation in Higher Education (NPT) was started. It aims to strengthen the capacity of post-secondary education institutions, such as universities and polytechnics. The programme is managed by The Netherlands Organization for International Cooperation in Higher Education (NUFFIC) in The Hague. The Embassy maintains close contacts with Nuffic and the Indonesian Ministry of National Education regarding the NPT programme.
Furthermore, the Embassy supports the multi-year training programme for Islamic Scholars in the Netherlands called: “Training Indonesia’s Young Leaders: Muslim Intellectuals as Agents of Change” with a contribution of EUR 2,9 million. This programme is carried out in close cooperation between The Indonesian Ministry of Religious Affairs (MORA) and the University of Leiden in the Netherlands. This programme offers scholarships for Masters, PhDs and postdoc education.

In the field of higher education, the Netherlands also supports the  programme for Cooperation between International Institutions (SII) for South-South Cooperation. This programme is managed by the Directorate for Cultural Cooperation, Education and Research of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in The Hague.