RRI.CO.ID, Samarinda - To combat the chronic turnover of educators in remote areas, the East Kalimantan Provincial Education and Culture Agency is intensifying an affirmative program designed to transform local youths from the hinterlands into future teachers for their own communities.

The initiative is a strategic response to the trend of outside educators frequently requesting transfers back to urban centers. The Acting Head of the East Kalimantan Education and Culture Agency, Armin, emphasized in Samarinda on Monday, April 27, 2026, that local recruitment is the key to stability.

"This affirmative policy is vital for producing teachers from remote areas and returning them to their origins, as educators from outside the region often do not stay long," said Armin, as quoted by Antara.

Under this scheme, the provincial administration is offering wide-ranging opportunities for local students to pursue teaching degrees through full scholarships. Upon graduation, these students will be prioritized for teaching positions within their home villages.

Armin explained that ensuring access to quality education in isolated regions, such as the Upper Mahakam, is essential to boosting the Gross Enrollment Ratio (APK). However, the path to educational equity faces internal hurdles.

Armin noted that despite providing adequate supporting facilities, such as dormitories, the desire of some children to pursue formal schooling remains low. He stressed that increasing parental awareness is a critical pillar of this mission.

"The administration still faces challenges, namely the low willingness of children to attend school despite adequate supporting facilities like dormitories," he said.

Armin further noted that massive socialization and policies favoring local communities are necessary to shift parental mindsets.

One such policy includes a dedicated quota for students from Disadvantaged, Frontier, and Outermost (3T) regions at the Garuda Transformasi High School. Armin highlighted that high-achieving students at this institution have significant opportunities to secure full scholarships for higher education, including international study.

Addressing the broader issue of teacher distribution, Armin called for national education regulations to be adjusted to accommodate local wisdom and specific regional needs.

He pointed out that many teachers with Government Employees with Work Agreements (PPPK) status are currently concentrated in urban areas, the provincial administration now aims to redirect these personnel to the interior.

To ensure this redistribution is effective, the province is committed to upgrading infrastructure to eliminate the stark disparity between elite urban schools and rural institutions. Looking toward the future, the East Kalimantan Provincial Education and Culture Agency has set an ambitious target for all schools across the province to achieve National Plus School standards by 2028. ***