Minister Brian: One Garuda School Costs Minimum Rp200 Billion to Build

October 8, 2025 | 11:07 pm

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Brian Yuliarto, the Minister of Higher Education, Science, and Technology, stated that each new Garuda School requires a minimum budget of Rp200 billion. This funding is drawn from the state budget (APBN) managed by the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology.

Brian mentioned that four new Garuda Schools have already entered the construction phase. "These schools are being built in areas that do not have existing outstanding schools," he said after the introduction of the Garuda School program at SMAN Unggulan MH Thamrin in East Jakarta on Wednesday, October 8, 2025.

Program Scope and Goals

The Garuda distinguished schools are a priority program of the Prabowo Subianto government. The schools are specifically designed for students who demonstrate above-average achievements based on certain assessments.

Brian detailed that the four new Garuda Schools currently under construction are located in East Belitung, South Central Timor, East Nusa Tenggara, South Konawe, Southeast Sulawesi, and Bulungan, North Kalimantan.

He stated that the construction of these four schools, intended for high-achieving students, is being expedited to allow learning activities to commence by the 2026/2027 academic year.

Following the introduction of these four schools, the government aims to build another 16 new Garuda Schools by 2029. "So in total, there will be 20 new Garuda Schools," he projected.

In addition to the new construction, the government also introduced 12 Garuda transformation schools. These are regular distinguished schools that have been upgraded into Garuda Schools and have been operational since the 2025/2026 academic year, which began last July.

The schools selected for transformation were already among the best in Indonesia. Therefore, Brian noted, the government does not need to allocate funds for construction at the transformation schools.

"Actually, the existing outstanding high schools that have been nurtured by the Ministry of Education are already very good. We just need to add the preparation for learning activities," he explained.

The twelve regular high schools selected to become Garuda transformation schools include:

• SMAN 10 Fajar Harapan, Aceh

• SMA Unggul Del, North Sumatra

• MAN Insan Cendekia Ogan Komering Ilir, South Sumatra

• SMAN Unggulan MH Thamrin, DKI Jakarta

• SMA Cahaya Rancamaya, West Java

• SMA Taruna Nusantara, Central Java

• SMA Pradita Dirgantara, Central Java

• SMAN 10 Samarinda, East Kalimantan

• SMAN Banua BBS, South Kalimantan

• MAN Insan Cendekia Gorontalo, Gorontalo

• SMAN Siwalima Ambon, Maluku

• SMA Averos Sorong, Southwest Papua

According to Brian, the government will increase the number of Garuda transformation schools to 80 in the future. This will bring the total number of Garuda Schools built during the five-year Prabowo administration to 100.

He emphasized that the Garuda Schools launched today are a vital avenue for high-achieving students to prove themselves and compete healthily. Students at Garuda Schools will be prepared to compete on the international stage.

Brian stated that Garuda Schools are designed to produce graduates with high innovation, enabling them to lead Indonesia in catching up in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).

"These Garuda Schools are indeed prepared for fighters whose opponents are no longer just within our borders in Indonesia, but opponents from other countries," he concluded.

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