Year: 2026 | Month: August | Volume: 13 | Issue: 8 | Pages: 182-191
DOI: https://doi.org/10.52403/ijrr.20260818
One Region, Unequal Opportunities: Educational Disparities and Social Mobility Prospects in Kediri City and Regency, Indonesia
Forijati1, Ridwan2
1Post Graduate Program, Master of Economics Education, Universitas Nusantara PGRI Kediri, Kediri, Indonesia
2Early Childhood Education Teacher Education Program, Faculty of Teacher Training and Education, Universitas Nusantara PGRI Kediri, Kediri, Indonesia
Corresponding Author: Forijati
ABSTRACT
Regional inequality is still one of the main challenges in realizing equitable development in Indonesia, including between Kediri City and Kediri Regency. Despite being in the same geographical area and having close socioeconomic ties, the two regions still show differences in access to education, quality of human resources, and economic opportunities. This study aims to analyze the regional inequality between Kediri City and Kediri Regency and examine the role of education in encouraging community social mobility. The research uses a qualitative descriptive approach with the library research method. The data used are secondary data obtained from the Central Statistics Agency government reports and various relevant scientific literature. The results of the study show that Kediri City has higher achievements of the Human Development Index (HDI), average length of schooling, and the availability of better educational facilities than Kediri Regency. These differences affect job opportunities, income levels, and people's social mobility. Education plays a role as an investment in human capital that can increase the competence, productivity, and competitiveness of the workforce so that it becomes an important instrument in reducing regional inequality. Therefore, it is necessary to distribute equal access to education, improve the quality of educators, and strengthen educational infrastructure in Kediri Regency to support inclusive development and increase community social mobility.
Keywords: Regional Inequality, Education, Social Mobility, Human Capital, Kediri City, Kediri Regency
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