- Indonesia is diversifying its international education partnerships, increasingly looking to China alongside traditional destinations like the UK to send LPDP scholarship students abroad.
- The move aims to strengthen human capital development, regional ties, and global competitiveness by providing Indonesian students with advanced skills and cross-cultural exposure.
- Recent UK-Indonesia education dialogues and upcoming high-level visits highlight opportunities for collaboration in student mobility, research, and capacity-building programs.
Indonesia is increasing its efforts toward human capital development and is expanding international education partnerships, especially with fellow Asian nations like China, in what appears to be a strategic shift in its approach to sending scholars abroad. The UK has been one of the favorite destinations for students under Indonesia's LPDP scholarship program, which funds high-achieving scholars for advanced degrees abroad.
Recent developments, however, show that Indonesia increasingly considers other Asian destinations, including China, as alternatives, thus making it more competitive at the level of the UK and other traditional partners in attracting Indonesian students. This move reflects Indonesia's larger vision of higher education as a means to cement international relationships, diversify global exposure for students, and increase the pace of national capacity building.
The UK continues to offer a strong value proposition, based on quality education, an international reputation, and an extensive alumni network. However, Indonesian policymakers and education stakeholders signal that these strengths need to be communicated more clearly, also matched by deeper engagement strategies that go beyond student recruitment. It thus provides UK higher education institutions with an opportunity for differentiation through the development of sustainable collaborations in research, mobility programs, and transnational education, where Indonesian students see real value in choosing the UK as a destination for study.
Recent activities show Indonesia at the forefront in wielding education not only as a diplomatic but also strategic tool. At the beginning of the month, the Indonesian Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology, partnered with the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education in hosting the UK-Indonesia Joint Working Group on Education. The meeting brought together senior officials and education leaders, including Sir Steve Smith, UK International Education Champion; Dominic Jermey, UK Ambassador; Summer Xia, Director of the British Council Indonesia; and senior representatives from Indonesia’s ministries of education.
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Various discussions, during the course of the meeting, highlighted possibilities of collaboration in areas such as student mobility, research partnerships, and capacity-building programs, noting that education takes center stage in the bilateral cooperation.
Indonesia, too, pledged to send 1,000 students overseas, part of expanded scholarship programs, including those in partnership with China, within a strategy to diversify learning opportunities and build regional ties. This has the potential to improve Indonesian talent's position in global competitiveness by having their graduates equipped with advanced skills, cross-cultural competencies, and exposure to emerging technologies essential for national development.
A forthcoming visit by Indonesian President Prabowo to the UK to sign a Strategic Partnership with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, with education highlighted as a key area, further underlines the strategic value of education in Indonesia's foreign policy. For UK institutions, this is a timely window to raise profiles, extend engagement, and ensure that the UK remains a key destination for Indonesian students at a time when other Asian destinations are increasingly competitive. Combining quality education with targeted outreach and collaborative initiatives will go a long way toward embedding the UK's position in Indonesia's shifting scholarship landscape, while supporting Indonesia's ambitious goals on human capital development.
