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🇮🇩 Indonesia /Culture & Society

Ministry Says Purchase of School Shoes for the People's School Program Handed Over to Schools

From Tempo · (1h ago) Indonesian

Translated from Indonesian, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

TLDR

  • The Ministry of Social Affairs has delegated the initial purchase of school shoes for the 'people's school' program to individual schools.
  • Schools receive the budget and are responsible for purchasing shoes independently, with a maximum price limit of Rp 450,000 per pair and guidelines on color and material.
  • While this decentralized approach allows for flexibility, it leads to non-uniform procurement data that the ministry plans to reorganize for public clarity.

The Indonesian Ministry of Social Affairs (Kemensos) is implementing a novel approach to procuring school shoes for its 'people's school' program, entrusting the initial phase to the schools themselves. Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf, or Gus Ipul, explained that the budget is directly allocated to schools, empowering them to make their own purchases. This strategy, particularly for the initial urgent needs as the school year begins, allows schools to procure directly from the market, adhering to minimum specifications.

Anggaran dikasihkan ke sekolah, sekolah beli sendiri-sendiri.

— Saifullah Yusuf (Gus Ipul)Explaining the decentralized procurement process for school shoes.

This decentralized model, as detailed by Kemensos staff, sets a maximum price of around Rp 450,000 per pair, with basic requirements for color (black shoes, white socks) and material. The direct purchase method, using sales receipts instead of a national procurement contract, naturally leads to price variations across the 166 participating schools. Gus Ipul acknowledges that this makes the procurement data less uniform and has instructed his team to reorganize it for better public understanding.

Yang penting warnanya hitam, kaos kaki putih. Selebihnya tidak rumit.

— Kemensos StaffDescribing the minimal specifications for the school shoes.

However, Kemensos will still conduct centralized procurement for later waves of students, managed by the General Bureau through standard government procurement mechanisms. Additional items like socks will also be procured centrally and distributed. The phased rollout of the program, with different waves scheduled from July to October, necessitates varied procurement mechanisms based on field readiness and needs.

Karena ada 166 sekolah, harganya memang beda-beda.

— Kemensos StaffExplaining the reason for price variations in the procured school shoes.

Transparency International Indonesia researcher Agus Sarwono has expressed confusion regarding this approach, noting that government procurement data typically lists the General Secretariat as the implementer. Minister Gus Ipul, however, maintains that the ministry is open to further scrutiny, emphasizing that the technical details are handled by officials like the Commitment Making Officer (PPK) and that Kemensos is not hiding anything.

Supaya orang umum bisa lihat dengan mudah. Ini disebut (kaus kaki) include, tapi ada penganggaran lain, jadi bingung.

— Saifullah Yusuf (Gus Ipul)Acknowledging the need to reorganize procurement data for public clarity.
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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