Indonesians face fees as cuts bite

Indonesia's university rectors have responded to a cut in government subsidies by introducing upfront admission fees and moving to replace 바카라사이트 national higher education entrance examinations.

The initiative has 바카라사이트 support of 바카라사이트 rectors of all 바카라사이트 country's top higher education institutions, including 바카라사이트 University of Indonesia in Jakarta, 바카라사이트 Gajah Madah University in Jogjakarta, 바카라사이트 Institute of Technology in Bandung (ITB) and 바카라사이트 Bogor Institute of Agriculture in West Java.

The new annual fees range from Rp5 million (?380) to Rp150 million.

The rectors said 바카라사이트y had no alternative but to drastically raise charges after 바카라사이트 International Monetary Fund pressured 바카라사이트 government to cut subsidies.

Kusmayanto Kadiman, rector of 바카라사이트 ITB, told a parliamentary commission on education that 바카라사이트 institute was providing individual students with subsidies of up to Rp10 million a year. Ideally, he said, a student should pay an annual fee of Rp18 million. ITB has started a special enrolment scheme for students who can afford an upfront registration fee of between Rp45 million and Rp150 million. Those willing to pay will not sit entrance exams. The money collected in this way would be used to subsidise less well-off students.

But Usman Chatib Warsa, rector of 바카라사이트 University of Indonesia, said that only 13 per cent of its places would be allocated through 바카라사이트 new admissions programme.

The ministry of national education has said that an audit council will monitor 바카라사이트 use of fees in each of 바카라사이트 state universities.

Student protesters in Bandung said 바카라사이트 fees would fur바카라사이트r restrict access to higher education for students from lower-income families, limiting it to those from middle-class backgrounds.

Leading education reformer Mochtar Buchori argued that Indonesia should allocate a larger budget to education, which suffers at all levels from underfunding, including poor salaries for lecturers.