Jakarta – The government continues to strengthen social assistance policies so they are not merely consumptive in nature, but also encourage the independence of beneficiary communities. Through the integration of social assistance with empowerment programs for Beneficiary Families (Keluarga Penerima Manfaat/KPM), the state aims to improve sustainable and well-targeted welfare.
To this end, the Ministry of Cooperatives (Kemenkop) and the Ministry of Social Affairs (Kemensos) have jointly signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen community empowerment, particularly for KPM from government social assistance programs, by integrating them into the ecosystem of the Red and White Village Cooperative (Koperasi Desa Merah Putih/KDMP).
Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf, also known as Gus Ipul, said the cooperation is in line with Presidential Instruction No. 8 of 2025 on optimizing poverty alleviation, as well as Presidential Instruction No. 9 of 2025 on accelerating the establishment of Red and White Village and Urban Ward Cooperatives.
“Through this MoU, we want to strengthen collaboration so that beneficiary families whose assistance is distributed through the Ministry of Social Affairs can gradually become members of KDMP, once all systems and facilities are fully prepared,” Gus Ipul said.
He explained that beneficiaries will not only act as consumers, but also become members and owners of the cooperative. KPM will be encouraged to market their business products through KDMP and fulfill their basic needs from the cooperative.
“In addition to being consumers, they will also become owners of KDMP. At the end of the year, cooperative members are entitled to receive a share of the remaining operating surplus (SHU),” he explained.
This policy represents a transformation of the social assistance scheme from a consumptive approach toward economic empowerment, which the government has begun to promote through the strengthening of KDMP. The scheme is expected to provide direct economic benefits to KPM while simultaneously driving economic activity at the village and urban ward levels.
Minister of Cooperatives Ferry Juliantono stated that through this collaboration, KPM from various government assistance programs—such as the Indonesia Smart Program (Program Indonesia Pintar/PIP), the National Health Insurance Program (JKN-KIS), the Family Hope Program (Program Keluarga Harapan/PKH), rice social assistance or non-cash food assistance, as well as families of students from People’s Schools (Sekolah Rakyat/SR)—can join KDMP as members.
Membership in cooperatives will give KPM a new position in society. Communities will no longer be merely aid recipients, but also part of a productive and sustainable collective business system.
“This collaborative partnership is expected to support the President’s program to uplift the welfare of beneficiary communities by enabling them to become members of village cooperatives,” Ferry concluded.
