By: Arhadi Hunawam
The mission of the Prabowo Subianto and Gibran Rakabuming Raka pair in the 2024 Presidential Election is to eradicate poverty by prioritizing equitable economic policies. In a series of statements, they emphasized the importance of an inclusive approach to improving people’s welfare. After being elected, Prabowo Subianto has a wide opportunity to realize it.
Prabowo Subianto, who currently serves as Minister of Defense, as well as the president-elect for 2024-2029, emphasized that poverty alleviation must be a top priority in national development. He emphasized that policies that favor the common people will be the main foundation in their work programs. He stated that the voices of the people most affected by economic conditions should not be ignored.
Community involvement in the decision-making process is crucial. He plans to involve local communities in formulating economic policies that suit their needs. According to him, hearing directly from the aspirations of the community is very important so that the policies taken are truly effective.
President-elect Prabowo Subianto has accepted a proposal to form a ministry specifically to handle population and poverty issues. The proposal was submitted by the Population and Poverty Alleviation Caucus, which argued that the two issues need to be addressed in an integrated manner to increase effectiveness and efficiency. The proposed ministry is called the Ministry of Population or BKKBN.
One of the representatives of the Lalu Sudarmadi Caucus, emphasized that Prabowo’s attention to the problem of poverty which he often expressed in various meetings. Although poverty alleviation has become the focus of the government with an increase in the number of ministries and institutions and budget allocations, the poverty rate remains stagnant at around 25-35 million people every five years.
Then also highlighted the stunting reduction acceleration program which currently receives budget support of Rp30 trillion, but its effectiveness is questionable because it is handled by too many institutions. He recommended that the management of poverty management and stunting prevention be synergized through one door.
He proposed that the target of reducing poverty to 15 million people can be realized immediately. For that, the government is being innovative and continues to monitor both issues. Proposing the transformation of existing institutions, especially the National Population and Family Planning Agency (BKKBN), instead of forming a new institution. BKKBN is considered to have a good track record and accurate data, as well as field extension workers spread throughout Indonesia.
Meanwhile, Sukaryo Teguh Santoso, Deputy for Advocacy, Mobilization, and Information of BKKBN, emphasized the need for more focused poverty management. BKKBN is preparing a new strategic policy and hopes that population and poverty issues will be the main focus in the 2025-2029 period. Teguh emphasized the need for political will from the government to reduce poverty rates, and BKKBN is ready to carry out the mandated functions.
In the field of education, Prabowo and Gibran are committed to improving access and quality of education for children from underprivileged families. They plan to launch scholarship and skills training programs that can help the younger generation get decent jobs. According to Prabowo, education is the key to elevating people’s lives.
In terms of infrastructure, Prabowo and Gibran promised to build better access to remote areas. They believe that equitable infrastructure development will open up new economic opportunities for the community. Gibran emphasized that no area should be left behind in development.
PT Sarana Multigriya Finansial (Persero) or SMF provides advice to President-elect Prabowo Subianto regarding the 3 million houses program as his political promise. Chief Economist through the SMF Research Institute, Martin Daniel Siyaranamual, believes that the 3 million houses program from the president-elect will have a positive impact on the housing sector and stakeholders involved, including PT SMF.
Martin explained that the figure of 3 million houses was determined by Prabowo and could not be changed. For 1 million houses in urban areas, SMF proposed a division, where 400,000 units were intended for ownership for those who did not have a house, while 600,000 units were for home improvements.
Meanwhile, for the 2 million houses to be built in rural areas, SMF recommends 300,000 units for those who do not yet have a home, and 1.7 million units for repairing uninhabitable houses.
Martin emphasized that this proposal is the result of an internal study by the SMF Research Institute. He also stated that in discussing housing, the government needs to link two important variables, namely housing for poverty alleviation and housing for human resource development.
The government is working with various parties, including the private sector and financial institutions, to support the financing of this program and mission. The synergy between the government and the private sector is expected to create an innovative and efficient financing model, so that the target of housing development can be achieved more quickly and effectively.
Therefore, the presidential candidate pair invites all elements of society to work together to realize this great mission. They believe that joint efforts will accelerate the process of poverty alleviation in Indonesia.
*) The author is a Jakarta student living in Malang
