Prabowo Invites UK Universities to Establish Campuses in Indonesia

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Prabowo Subianto invited universities from the United Kingdom to collaborate with Indonesia. Prabowo expressed his desire for these universities to establish ten new campuses in Indonesia. Prabowo extended the invitation during the UK-Indonesia Education Roundtable at the Lancaster House in London on Tuesday, January 20, 2026. This forum was part of President Prabowo's state visit to the UK this week. Prabowo stated that he wants universities in the UK to help establish international-standard campuses in Indonesia that use English as the medium of instruction. "I want to adopt the English standard, which is the highest education standard from the best universities in the UK," Prabowo said in a statement from the Presidential Secretariat on Wednesday, January 21, 2026. Currently, Prabowo mentioned that universities from the UK have collaborated with several Indonesian campuses, such as the University of Indonesia and Gadjah Mada University. Some UK universities, Prabowo said, have also established campuses in Indonesia, such as King's College London in Singhasari, Malang, East Java, and Deakin Lancaster University in Bandung, West Java. Prabowo sees this educational collaboration as meeting Indonesia's needs in the field of science and technology. "So, we want to accelerate, we want to catch up, we must have the highest level of education, on par with the best in the world," said the Chairman of the Gerindra Party. According to Prabowo, Indonesia currently faces many challenges in science and technology, including a severe shortage of medical professionals, such as doctors and dentists. The president noted that Indonesia is still short around 140,000 doctors, despite the fact that only 9,000 medical graduates are produced each year. In response to these challenges, the government plans to build ten new universities focusing on medical education, dentistry, pharmacy, and science and technology. Prabowo stated that the students admitted would come from the best graduates and receive full scholarships from the government. Prabowo mentioned that the students will undergo intensive English language training before starting their studies. The Indonesian government also plans to collaborate with the British Council, including the implementation of the IELTS English language standard. During the UK-Indonesia Education Roundtable at Lancaster House, President Prabowo met with several officials from the UK government and prominent figures from UK universities. The representatives of the universities present included those from the Russell Group, which comprises 24 leading research-based universities in the UK, including Oxford, Cambridge, and Imperial College London. Prabowo expressed optimism that preparations for establishing British campuses in Indonesia will go well. Therefore, he believes that the new universities will start admitting students in 2028. Read: Prabowo Says UK Backs Indonesia's Plan to Build 1,500 Fishing Vessels