BPI Kemendes: Ideal Village Development Based on Cultural Identity
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Head of the Village and Underdeveloped Areas Information Development Agency (BPI) at the Ministry of Villages and Underdeveloped Regions (Kemendes PDT), Mulyadin Malik, stated that amid economic transformation and modernisation, ideal village development must remain based on the village’s cultural identity.
“Ideal development certainly still preserves the village’s identity. So, economic transformation must not erode social values, customary values, let alone the strength of the village community’s gotong royong,” said Mulyadin during the Perception Survey on the Positioning of the Ministry of Villages and Underdeveloped Regions (Kemendes PDT) in the National Arena, followed online in Jakarta on Tuesday.
He emphasised that village development should not only focus on physical and economic aspects but also needs to maintain the social character of the village community, which has long been the foundation of residents’ lives.
Furthermore, Mulyadin conveyed that the scope of duties of Kemendes PDT is very broad as it covers village development and empowerment across Indonesia with diverse regional issues and potentials.
In line with that, he continued, villages are a crucial point in national development, so village development governance needs to be carried out seriously and on target.
“If people say ‘build the village, build Indonesia’, this is spot on. The nation’s problems are in the villages. If the villages are good, then I think the nation will be good,” he said.
“Don’t be like before. For example, the song we sing, ‘Menanam Jagung’ (Planting Corn), turns out to be a misguided song. Why? Because the creator of the song is not from the village, but from the city,” said Mulyadin.
Looking ahead, he hopes that all ranks within the Kemendes PDT environment can strengthen organisational governance and village development so that the implementation of the Village Law’s mandate can run more effectively and provide real impacts for village communities.