Regulatory responsibilities in the Indonesian education sector are highly decentralised. Although policy, strategy and standards for Indonesian schools are largely determined at the national level, the thirty-three Indonesian provinces are responsible for quality assurance. Both the Ministry of National Education and the Ministry of Religious Affairs share responsibility for schools. There are a variety of authorities with responsibility for accreditation at the school level, including a National Accreditation Board for Schools/Islamic-Schools (BAN-SM)
The Ministry of National Education has overall responsibility for both public and private institutions within the higher education sector. The Ministry of National Education grants approval for the establishment of new higher education institutions. Institutions must also receive MONE approval for new study programs. In addition, the Ministry of Religious Affairs exercises oversight over Islamic institutes, which have the same rank as universities.
Formal accreditation is the task of the Indonesian National Accreditation Agency for Higher Education (NAA-HE). The NAA-HE is an independent body responsible to the Minister for National Education. At present, the NAA-HE is engaged in completing the accreditation of higher education institutions and programs under the new standards released in 2009. It is estimated that at least 30% of Indonesia’s 15,000 undergraduate programs are currently unaccredited under the new standard.
a) International regulatory and policy frameworks
The NAA-HE is part of the Association of Quality Assurance Agencies of the Islamic World (ADAAIW), the ASEAN Quality Assurance Network (AQAN), the International Network for Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education (INQAAHE) and the Asia-Pacific Quality Network (APQN).
b) Regional agreements
The Indonesian government has indicated its intention to become a party to the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area Agreement (AANZFTA) as soon as possible. This agreement has the potential to increase the export of education services from Australia and New Zealand.
UNPDP United Nations Partnership For Development Framework 2011-2015: Indonesia
Let speak out for MDGs: achieving the Millennium Development Goals in Indonesia
Indonesia: EFA Mid-Decade Assessment 2007
United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF) Indonesia 2006-2010
Indonesia's Education for All: national plan of action 2003/2015
c) National regulations and policy
National Education Act (2003)
d) State/District regulations and policy
None identified.
e) University policies
The management of universities has changed rapidly over recent years. Before 1997, all public universities were responsible solely to the Ministry of Higher Education. University rectors were directly appointed by the Indonesia President, and every professor was a member of the University Senate. Increasingly, university rectors answer to an independent Board of Trustees while members of the University Senate are elected. Decentralisation and institutional democratisation has given universities the freedom to compete for students and for funding from government and outside sources. At the same time, these trends have increased the pressures on University administrators, who must attempt to steer a middle ground between Government policy and the demands of internal constituencies.