Ministry of Finance Cancels 2025 Ministerial Scholarship as Part of Budget Savings Policy
The Ministry of Finance (Kemenkeu) has officially canceled the 2025 Ministerial Scholarship program, following President Prabowo Subianto's instructions to save money. The decision was announced on January 31, 2025, following the Leadership Meeting of the Financial Education and Training Agency (BPPK).
Reasons for the Cancellation of the Ministerial Scholarship
According to Tempo.Co English, canceling this program aligns with Presidential Instruction (Inpres) No. 1 of 2025, which mandates that all ministries and agencies implement budget efficiency measures.
President Prabowo instructed a budget cut of Rp 306.69 trillion in the 2025 State and Regional Budgets (APBN and APBD), which includes a reduction of Rp 256.1 trillion in ministerial/agency budgets and Rp 50.59 trillion in transfers to regions.
As a follow-up, Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani Indrawati issued letter No. S-37/MK.02/2025, outlining budget reductions for 16 expenditure items, with cuts ranging from 10 to 90 percent. One affected program is the Ministerial Scholarship, which was initially scheduled to run until February 9, 2025.
Impact on Human Resource Development at the Ministry of Finance
The Ministerial Scholarship program was designed to equip future leaders with postgraduate education abroad to enhance competitiveness and improve human resource quality within the Ministry of Finance. This initiative aimed to support the ministry’s vision and mission in strengthening the national financial sector.
With this cancellation, the registration process, which had been open since January 10, 2025, has been officially discontinued.
“We sincerely apologize for this decision. As a follow-up, the entire scholarship registration process has been terminated effective from the date of this announcement,” said Wahyu, as quoted by Tempo.Co English.
Government's Commitment to Fiscal Stability and Future Policies
The cancellation of the 2025 Ministerial Scholarship reflects the government’s strategy to adjust the budget according to national fiscal conditions.
Although this decision delays human resource development at the Ministry of Finance, the government emphasizes that this step is necessary to maintain the country’s economic stability in the long term.
