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🇮🇩 Indonesia /Economy & Trade

Indonesia to Pilot Social Aid Distribution via 900 Cooperatives

From Tempo · () Indonesian

Translated from Indonesian, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Sources not specified New plan
  • The Indonesian Ministry of Social Affairs will pilot a social assistance distribution program through Koperasi Merah Putih.
  • Approximately 900 units of Koperasi Merah Putih are ready to distribute aid, including the Family Hope Program and basic food assistance.
  • The initiative aligns with a presidential instruction to integrate social assistance recipients into the cooperative model, which also aims to market products from social empowerment programs.

The Indonesian Ministry of Social Affairs is set to trial a new method for distributing social assistance, utilizing the Koperasi Merah Putih (Red and White Cooperative) network. Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf announced that 900 cooperative units nationwide are prepared for this pilot program.

Social assistance distribution will be carried out gradually in KDMP.

— Saifullah YusufMinister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf announcing the pilot program.

The assistance to be distributed includes funds from the Family Hope Program and a monthly basic food assistance package valued at Rp 200,000. This aid will be disbursed quarterly, with distributions occurring four times within a three-month period.

Beneficiaries will receive goods that may have competitive prices.

— Saifullah YusufMinister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf describing the benefits of Koperasi Merah Putih.

Koperasi Merah Putih is envisioned as a hub for government-subsidized essential goods, offering competitive prices to its members. The distribution process will involve agents from state-owned banks (Himbara) operating within the cooperative units, as current regulations mandate these banks or PT Pos Indonesia for social assistance delivery. However, the ministry anticipates potential future regulatory changes that could allow direct distribution through the cooperatives.

In the future, if regulations change, it could be directly through Koperasi Merah Putih, no longer through Himbara.

— Saifullah YusufMinister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf discussing potential future distribution channels.

This move is part of the government's effort to adapt to Presidential Instruction No. 9 of 2025, which mandates the acceleration of Koperasi Desa/Kelurahan Merah Putih. The instruction specifically tasks the Minister of Social Affairs with encouraging social assistance beneficiaries to become cooperative members and facilitating the promotion and marketing of products generated from social empowerment programs through these cooperatives. The cooperative will work alongside Pos Indonesia, which will focus on remote areas, frontier regions, and direct delivery to individuals with disabilities and the elderly, aiming for synergy in the distribution process.

Ultimately, there will be synergy.

— Saifullah YusufMinister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf on the collaboration between Koperasi Merah Putih and Pos Indonesia.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Tempo in Indonesian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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