Donation on poverty alleviation to be reported

JAKARTA (JP): An accountability report on donations to a poverty alleviation program will be released Monday at President Soeharto's residence on Jl. Cendana, Central Jakarta.

The President would chair the first annual meeting of the Yayasan Dana Sejahtera Mandiri foundation, which runs the program, State Minister of Population Haryono Suyono said Wednesday.

"The president has ordered me to make thorough preparations for the meeting," Haryono said after meeting Soeharto at Merdeka Palace.

The financial report, audited by a public accountant, will be released to donors and the public to inform them on how donations were used in the poverty alleviation program.

"The foundation has collected Rp 762 billion (US$ 338.7 million)," Haryono said.

He said the number of individual donors had increased from 3,000 in 1996/1997 to 5,000 in 1997/998, but the number of companies had dropped from 5,000 to 3,400 over the same period.

"The number of companies dropped because many of them are still waiting for their annual shareholders' meetings (to take decisions on donations)," said Haryono.

The foundation was set up in January 1996 to help 22 million people living below the poverty. Soeharto chairs the foundation in a personal capacity.

Soeharto set up the foundation with businessmen Sudono Salim (Liem Sioe Liong) and Sudwikatmono and minister Haryono. They are all deputies of the foundation.

Soeharto and the foundation's other executives would discuss future programs besides presenting the report, Haryono said.

Bambang Trihatmodjo, Soeharto's son, is the foundation's treasurer and Anthony Salim, Liem's son, is deputy treasurer. Minister of Cooperatives and Small Companies Subijakto Tjakrawardaja is the secretary and Director General for Tax Fuad Bawazier is deputy secretary.

"The president ordered that the program be accelerated to eradicate poverty and socioeconomic disparity," Haryono said.

The foundation gets its funds from donations based on Presidential Decree No.90/1995.

The decree urges individuals and companies with after-tax incomes or profits of more than Rp 100 million a year to donate up to 2 percent of their earnings to the program.

Soeharto announced last week in Bogor that his foundation had lent Rp 118.246 billion to almost six million poor people in the last two years.

In the first cabinet meeting on the poverty alleviation program in April, Soeharto said the program had reduced the number of people living below the poverty line from 25.9 million in 1995 to 22.5 million in 1996.

The government launched a special poverty alleviation program in 1994 for least-developed villages. The Presidential Aid for the Least Developed Villages program handed out Rp 20 million to every poor village.

"The president hopes that our efforts to fight poverty does not stop at meetings only," Haryono said. (06)