Reconstructing the Vocational Education Ecosystem within the Framework of the Golden Indonesia Vision 2045: Human Capital Gap Analysis and Acceleration Strategy

Hertanto, Yudhi

International Journal of Asian Education
Vol. 6 No. 4 (2025): IJAE Vol. 06, No. 3, December 2025 All articles in this issue include authors f

This study evaluates the readiness of the vocational education (SMK) ecosystem in Indonesia towards the Human Capital Index and labor productivity targets in the 2025-2045 National Long-Term Development Plan (RPJPN) towards the Golden Indonesia Vision 2045. The study aims to analyze performance gaps, identify structural barriers, and formulate acceleration strategies. Using a descriptive qualitative approach with a systematic literature review (SLR) and secondary data analysis (2023-2025), the population includes policy documents, BPS statistics, and SINTA/Scopus indexed articles (n>500), purposively sampled into 45 articles and 12 primary documents. The PRISMA-based SLR protocol and Miles-Huberman-Saldana interactive analysis ensure validity through macro-micro triangulation. The results show crucial gaps: TPT of SMK graduates is 8.62% versus the target of 3-4%, low HCI (0.54), persistent skills mismatch, teacher competency deficits violating Prosser's postulate, and Teaching Factory is not market-oriented. In conclusion, ecosystem reconstruction requires revitalization of BLUD, teacher returnship, and integration of green-digital curriculum to realize the demographic dividend..