By: Rivka Mayangsari )*
The government continues to strengthen the people’s economic foundations through various village-based programs, one of which is the development of the Merah Putih Village/Sub-district Cooperative (Kopdes Merah Putih). This program is designed as a strategic instrument to ensure the community’s basic needs remain affordable, goods distribution is more efficient, and the welfare of villagers is continuously improved. By prioritizing the spirit of mutual cooperation and shared ownership, Kopdes Merah Putih is at the forefront of ensuring access to affordable basic necessities for residents.
The Ministry of Cooperatives continues to encourage the Red and White Village Cooperatives (Kopdes Merah Putih) to utilize loan funding facilities from the Cooperative Revolving Fund Management Institution (LPDB Koperasi). This financial support is key to ensuring village cooperatives have sufficient working capital to establish productive business units, expand distribution networks, and maintain the availability of basic necessities at stable prices. This initiative also demonstrates the government’s direct involvement in strengthening the village economy through cooperative institutions.
Funding from the LPDB Cooperative allows the Merah Putih Village Cooperative to not only exist administratively but also operate effectively and professionally. With capital support, the cooperative can purchase large quantities of basic food supplies directly from producers or main distributors. This scheme shortens the supply chain and reduces intermediary costs, allowing for lower and more manageable selling prices to the public. The impact is felt directly at the community level, especially for families with limited purchasing power.
Each Red and White Village Cooperative is required to provide seven main outlets essential for community services. These outlets include a cooperative office, a grocery store, a savings and loan unit, a village clinic, a village pharmacy, a cold storage facility , and logistics facilities. The presence of these grocery stores is a key pillar in maintaining a stable supply of basic necessities for residents. With a cooperative management system, distribution is not solely focused on profit, but also on service and affordability.
These comprehensive facilities are designed to make the cooperative an integrated center for village economic services. Grocery stores ensure daily necessities are readily available to residents. Cold storage maintains the quality of fresh food products, such as agricultural and fishery products, and processed products. Logistics facilities expedite the movement of goods from source to distribution point. All are integrated into a single institutional system shared by the village community.
The Red and White Village Cooperative (Kopdes Merah Putih) is a community-based economic strengthening program at the village and sub-district levels. This scheme is built on the principles of mutual cooperation, kinship, and active community participation. Cooperatives serve not only as a venue for economic transactions but also as a platform for consolidating community power. Residents are no longer merely consumers but also members and owners with a say in determining the cooperative’s business direction.
As a joint venture, the Red and White Village Cooperative is encouraged to manage various productive business units. In addition to distributing basic necessities, the cooperative can also develop savings and loan services, agricultural product management, local trade, and even village logistics services. This business diversification provides the cooperative with multiple revenue streams, ensuring operational sustainability while providing broad benefits to its members.
This program was introduced as a strategy to strengthen the village economy so that it no longer relies on long distribution chains. Currently, staple food prices in many regions can skyrocket due to distribution through numerous intermediaries. With cooperatives as distribution centers, supply chains become shorter and more transparent. As a result, prices are more stable, availability is maintained, and price speculation is reduced.
The primary objective of establishing the Red and White Village Cooperative is to improve the welfare of village and sub-district communities. Through cooperatives, local economic activities are consolidated into a single, formal institution with stronger capital and bargaining power. When cooperatives purchase on a large scale and sell collectively to members, their bargaining power with suppliers improves. This directly impacts the ability to provide affordable, high-quality basic necessities.
The Red and White Village Cooperative also expands access to financing for residents. Many small business owners in the village previously struggled to obtain loans from formal financial institutions. With the cooperative’s savings and loan unit, access to capital has become easier and more member-friendly. Micro-entrepreneurs can develop small shops, farms, or local food production, which are then channeled back through the cooperative’s outlets. This creates a mutually reinforcing local economic cycle.
Moreover, Kopdes Merah Putih fosters a sense of collective ownership over the basic necessities distribution system. When residents become members and owners, there is a strong incentive to maintain honest, efficient, and mutually beneficial governance. Transparency in pricing, product quality, and stock availability become a shared concern, not just the responsibility of a handful of business owners.
With LPDB funding support, strong institutional design, and active community participation, the Red and White Village Cooperative (Kopdes Merah Putih) has emerged as a concrete solution to ensuring residents’ access to affordable basic necessities. This program emphasizes that village economic independence is not just talk, but a structured movement. From strong villages, national economic resilience is built—starting with the most basic need: affordable and readily available food for all.
)* The author is an economic observer