ABSTRACT
As the seventh largest economy and the fourth most populous country, Indonesia sets ambitious goals to revitalise its TVET system and prepare its citizens with skills for the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Between 2020–2070, Indonesia will experience a demographic bonus, which could boost its economy to become a developed country. Nevertheless, the quality of TVET is generally low and unable to produce job-ready graduates. Concurrently, the labour market structure shifts due to digitalisation with more demand for highly skilled workers, leading to a ‘hollowing out’ of semi-skilled occupations, predominantly filled by TVET graduates. This hollowing out requires a profound reorientation of the country's policies for employment and TVET as reflected in the 2020–2024 Medium Term National Development Plan and Strategic Plan of the Ministry of Education and Culture. Both prioritise improving the role of industries in TVET to increase the quality of training and education. The cases of a vocational secondary school in Kudus and Bandung Manufacturing Polytechnic are examples of how the Indonesian TVET system can be revitalised through partnership with the industries. The chapter ends with a summary of the remaining issues and implications for policymakers.
