By: Irfan Nurmaji)*
The Village Pharmacy Program is currently running in stages in various regions of Indonesia as a strategic step by the government in bringing health services closer to rural communities. Through an approach that combines pharmaceutical services, health education, and village economic empowerment, this program has become a bright spot in answering the challenge of equal distribution of health workers.
Through Presidential Instruction Number 9 of 2025 concerning the Acceleration of the Establishment of Red and White Village/Sub-district Cooperatives, the Village Pharmacy program is mandated as an integral part of the transformation of public services in rural areas. This policy is also an acknowledgment that pharmaceutical services must be part of the basic rights of the community that should not be centralized only in cities.
Coordinating Minister for Food, Zulkifli Hasan, said that as many as 30,000 village health posts (poskesdes) and 20,000 assistant health centers (pustu) will be integrated into village cooperatives. This means that around 50,000 villages have the potential to have access to integrated health services. This integration is an important foundation for equalizing health worker services and providing basic medicines more efficiently and inclusively.
In addition to being a place for distributing medicines, village clinics and pharmacies will also provide health screening services, vaccinations, public health education, limited treatment, and rapid laboratory tests. These services are designed to respond to the basic needs of villagers who previously had to travel long distances to obtain similar services.
The Village Pharmacy Program will also distribute national program medicines such as HIV, TB, and malaria, as well as prescription drugs, over-the-counter drugs, herbal medicines, supplements, and basic health equipment. This comprehensive service concept aims to ensure that rural communities have equal access to health without having to sacrifice large amounts of time and money.
This step is a reflection of the strategic policy after the Covid-19 pandemic, where the limited reach of health infrastructure has proven to be a major weakness in responding to the crisis. The government has learned from this experience and is now pushing for health services to be present at the forefront, namely in villages.
Minister of Health, Budi Gunadi Sadikin, said that optimizing existing human resources is key. The views conveyed emphasized that equality does not always have to be done by recruiting new health workers, but by combining existing health workers efficiently. Nurses, paramedics, and pharmacists can work together in an integrated system, so that village pharmacies are truly functional and provide good service.
Village Pharmacy does not operate alone, but is part of a larger framework of village cooperatives that encourage synergy between health and the economy. Under the administration of President Prabowo Subianto, this program has received serious attention because it is able to answer two strategic issues at once, increasing access to health services and empowering the economy of village communities.
By bringing pharmacy access closer to the community, this program helps reduce the burden on hospitals and health centers at the sub-district level. People no longer need to travel far to get medicine or basic check-ups, because everything can be accessed in their own environment.
This health cooperative scheme allows for active community participation. The approach used makes the community not only a beneficiary, but also part of the management of the health service itself. This strengthens the sense of ownership of the health facilities in the village, while ensuring the sustainability of the long-term program.
The Presidential Instruction that is the legal basis for this program requires the establishment of Village Pharmacies in around 80,000 villages and sub-districts. The challenges faced are certainly great, but the potential that can be achieved is also very promising if the implementation is carried out consistently and coordinated between institutions.
The government also prioritizes the principle of efficiency by utilizing 54,000 existing service facilities. This step allows for a more efficient budget allocation but still has a broad impact. This approach shows the government’s courage to innovate without having to build a system from scratch.
Village Pharmacy is not just a place to get medicine. This program is a symbol of the presence of the state in the midst of society. When the village community feels properly served, trust in the government grows and strengthens overall social stability.
The existence of Village Pharmacy opens up job opportunities for new graduate pharmacists. Career opportunities outside big cities are more open, which in turn improves the distribution of health workers nationally.
From the community education side, this program plays a role in increasing health literacy. Educational activities carried out routinely in village clinics help the community understand the importance of disease prevention and wise use of drugs.
This program is in line with the direction of national development that prioritizes balance between regions. Equalizing health services through Village Pharmacies is a long-term strategy that not only impacts the health sector, but also the quality of human development as a whole.
Through a collaborative and community-based approach, the Village Pharmacy’s great potential to be a solution to the imbalance in the distribution of health workers is increasingly wide open. The government has paved the way, and now all parties are expected to play a role in making its implementation a success.
The Village Pharmacy Program will be proof that health service transformation does not have to be expensive and complicated. With clear partisanship, courage to act, and involvement of all elements of the nation, this program can be a big leap in the national health service system.
)* The author is a student living in Bandung
