Indonesia plans empowerment curriculum for Islamic boarding schools

JAKARTA — Indonesia's government is drafting an empowerment programme to become part of the curriculum at Islamic boarding schools, known as pondok pesantren, and senior madrasahs, according to Coordinating Minister for Community Empowerment Abdul Muhaimin Iskandar. He spoke on Monday, 19 October 2026, after a coordination meeting with Religious Affairs Minister Nasaruddin Umar in Jakarta, according to Antara.

Muhaimin said the government is "refining the concept of empowerment within the education ecosystem." The plan takes into account the economic situation of students, most of whom come from income deciles 1 to 4, he said, according to Antara.

The aim, Muhaimin said, is to prepare graduates who are ready for work or ready to run their own businesses. He said "ready for work" means being able to enter jobs suited to upper-secondary education levels. "Ready to run a business" means adding elements of empowerment and self-reliance so graduates can become business operators, he said.

Muhaimin said many pesantren already operate as productive economic communities. He cited Al-Ittifaq pesantren in Bandung, West Java, which he described as a pioneer of the eco-pesantren model and a centre for agribusiness self-reliance. He said it could serve as a model for other pesantren. He also invited ministries and companies to support the programme through their corporate social responsibility (CSR) funds.

Religious Affairs Minister Nasaruddin Umar said Indonesia has 80,000 madrasahs and 42,000 pesantren under his ministry. He said most of them serve students from deciles 1 to 4, according to Antara.

Antara's report does not give a timeline, a budget or the details of the curriculum. It does not say when the draft would be finalised or which ministries would take part.

Background

Pesantren are Islamic boarding schools in Indonesia, where students live and study religious texts. Madrasah aliyah are senior secondary schools that teach both religious and general subjects. Both fall under the Ministry of Religious Affairs. Income deciles rank households by economic status, with decile 1 the lowest. The report was published by Antara in Indonesian, and the quotations in this article were translated from that report.