DPD RI Chairman: 4,000 Bengkulu Students to Receive PIP via DPD Aspiration Channel
Bengkulu (ANTARA) - The Chairman of the Regional Representative Council (DPD) RI, Sultan B. Najamudin, stated that 4,000 students in Bengkulu province will receive the Indonesia Pintar Programme (PIP) through the DPD RI aspiration channel for the 2025–2026 period, with total assistance reaching Rp3.2 billion.
“We project an additional quota for Bengkulu province, both globally and through the DPD RI aspiration channel,” said Sultan via an electronic message received in Bengkulu on Wednesday.
Sultan explained that the PIP recipients consist of 2,228 primary school students with total assistance exceeding Rp1 billion, 940 junior secondary school students worth Rp705 million, and 416 each of senior secondary school and vocational secondary school students valued at Rp748.8 million.
According to him, the dominance of recipients from the primary school level reflects the government’s focus on strengthening the foundation of basic education as a crucial stage in building the quality of human resources in Bengkulu.
Furthermore, Sultan also reminded that the recruitment process for prospective PIP recipients in the field must be free from any form of illegal levies outside the provisions.
“We must all safeguard it in the field; there should be no illegal levies from any party that burden students and families in the proposal process to disbursement. Do not hesitate to report if there are indications of such things,” he said.
Further, according to Sultan, the junior secondary level is a critical phase because many students are at risk of dropping out due to economic constraints and long travel distances.
Meanwhile, the allocation for senior secondary schools is aimed at maintaining student consistency in completing secondary education and preparing to continue to higher education, while for vocational secondary schools, it is intended to support vocational education so that graduates are ready to become skilled and competitive workers.
He also emphasised the importance of local government support in providing accurate student data through the basic education data (dapodik), as well as parental oversight of the use of the assistance funds.
The Indonesia Pintar Programme has been reopened for students in Bengkulu and is intended for students from poor and vulnerable poor families so they can continue their education.
The proposal for prospective recipients is carried out through verification by the school party with data that must match the socio-economic conditions and be recorded in the poverty database managed by the state.
“We want to ensure that no child in Bengkulu drops out of school just because of economic limitations. PIP must truly target those in need,” said Sultan.