Coordinating Minister Muhaimin strengthens three foundations for community empowerment
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Coordinating Ministry for Community Empowerment is strengthening three foundations to transform its approach to poverty alleviation: the National Single Social and Economic Data (DTSEN), a shift in the government’s approach towards empowerment, and multi-stakeholder collaboration to maximise communities’ potential.
“We have established the first basic foundation: DTSEN, which can serve as a reference for integrated, effective and well-targeted poverty alleviation,” Coordinating Minister for Community Empowerment Abdul Muhaimin Iskandar said in a press release issued by the ministry in Jakarta on Thursday.
He was speaking at the 2026 National Santri Day commemoration at Dar El Hikmah Islamic Boarding School in Pekanbaru, Riau, on Thursday.
He said the three foundations would ensure that poverty alleviation efforts did not stop at providing assistance, but also opened pathways for communities to become self-reliant and participate in the economy.
Under the first foundation, the government is responsible for reaching around 23 million target beneficiaries across 88 regencies and municipalities and 16,550 priority villages and urban wards listed in DTSEN.
“In time, we will reach a point where the number of social assistance recipients will fall, as people become self-reliant individuals and economic actors,” Muhaimin said.
The approach is being implemented through various cross-sectoral programmes. In the maritime and fisheries sector, the development of fishing villages is improving access to financing, production facilities, raw materials and equipment.
Meanwhile, the state-owned Permodalan Nasional Madani (PNM) programme is encouraging the emergence of new entrepreneurs while strengthening the community business ecosystem.
The ministry said the strengthening of the three foundations was taking place alongside a fall in the national poverty rate, which now stands at 8.07 per cent, down from 9.03 per cent.
The government aims to reduce poverty to no more than 5 per cent by 2029.
“To ensure the programmes’ sustainability, we continue to coordinate, harmonise and synergise the work of all ministries and agencies. A presidential instruction provides a reference requiring all ministries, agencies and regional governments to comply with the empowerment programmes,” Muhaimin said.