45% of Indonesia's Social Assistance Suspected to Be Off-Target, Government to Take Action

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - Head of the Government Communication Agency of the Republic of Indonesia (Bakom RI), Muhammad Qodari, revealed that around 45% of social assistance is still affected by inclusion error.

Qodari explained that inclusion error is a condition where people who should not receive assistance are instead receiving social assistance.

“According to records from the Ministry of Social Affairs, as much as 45% of social assistance is still experiencing inclusion error,” said Qodari during a press conference at the Bakom RI office on Wednesday (19/8/2026).

In addition, the Head of Bakom RI explained in his presentation that there is also exclusion error, which is a condition where people who should receive assistance are not receiving it.

He recounted that during a working visit to Surabaya on 28 July 2026, he found data showing 25,000 heads of households no longer met the requirements as social assistance recipients, or were experiencing inclusion errors that needed to be corrected.

Meanwhile, around 51,000 heads of households had not yet been registered to receive government social assistance.

“So all this time the exclusion error has been nearly 51,000 households, which is very large. If one household consists of three people, that is 150,000 individuals who should be receiving assistance. But all this time they have not received it because the registration mechanism has not been good,” Qodari stated.

Therefore, the government is currently implementing e-government, particularly in the area of social protection, to ensure social assistance is distributed accurately.

Digitalisation of the government system is believed to have a positive effect on the state budget in the form of savings.

“Through digitalisation of social protection, they now obtain their rights. This is a manifestation of justice in the distribution of social assistance through digital social protection,” he said.