Empowerment is Key, PNM Encourages Clients to Upgrade and Avoid Loan Sharks
For many ultra-micro entrepreneurs, the need for capital often arises urgently. Whether it is purchasing raw materials, fulfilling orders, paying school fees, or meeting pressing household needs, the demand for immediate funds is constant.
In such situations, quick and easy loan services often become the first choice. However, behind this convenience, many individuals face new burdens due to heavy repayment patterns and persistent obligations that can jeopardies the sustainability of their businesses.
The phenomenon of loan sharks and informal lending practices remains a significant challenge for those without full access to formal financial services. For unbankable groups, limitations in documentation, collateral, business scale, and financial literacy often act as barriers to obtaining safe and structured financing. Consequently, choices perceived as quick at the outset can transform into problems that hinder business growth.
Amidst these conditions, PT Permodalan Nasional Madani (PNM), through its PNM Mekaar programme, serves as a more inclusive financing access point for underprivileged female ultra-micro entrepreneurs. PNM Mekaar provides collateral-free financing based on a group model, accompanied by Weekly Group Meetings (PKM). Beyond mere capital, PNM also provides empowerment through training, business mentoring, financial management, and business capacity development.
PNM has served over 22.9 million female customers with a service network spanning 58 branch offices and 6,165 districts across Indonesia. Throughout 2025, PNM has conducted 52,394 training sessions, reaching 1,853,170 participants. This data demonstrates that empowerment is achieved not only through access to finance but also through an ongoing mentoring process within the community.
For customers, the presence of PNM Mekaar provides a space to learn business management while building independence. Group meetings are not merely for loan repayments but serve as a forum for mutual reminders, learning, and support to ensure businesses remain operational. In this setting, financial capital meets social capital; female entrepreneurs do not walk alone, as they are supported by both mentoring and a community.
Indriana, a PNM Mekaar customer from Depok who runs a fried snack business, emphasised the importance for women to be wise in choosing capital access. She noted that PNM Mekaar provides not only business capital but also training and opportunities to expand markets through Weekly Group Meetings.
“Women who are the economic pillars of their families must be smarter in managing businesses and obtaining capital. I choose PNM Mekaar,” said Indriana.
Indriana mentioned that being a PNM Mekaar customer has provided broader benefits beyond financing. Through Mekaar, she has experienced the benefits of financial, intellectual, and social capital to help develop her business.
“Mekaar provides financial, intellectual, and social capital. Simply put, avoid loan sharks and join PNM Mekaar. I have gained many benefits from Mekaar,” she revealed.
A similar sentiment was shared by Selly, another PNM Mekaar customer from Depok who operates a salon and perfume business. She stated that PNM Mekaar helped her grow her business through financing and training. For her, access to financing accompanied by mentoring provides a greater sense of security, as customers do not just receive capital but are also guided to organise their businesses gradually.
Selly also felt broader benefits for her family, ranging from meeting household needs and schooling her children to participating in social activities within her neighbourhood.
“Do not get trapped by loan sharks. If I want to avoid moneylenders, it is better to join PNM Mekaar, which has proven to improve my business and increase my family’s welfare,” she said.
This view aligns with the opinion of Professor Imam Widhiono from Jenderal Soedirman University. He believes that one of the most effective ways to distance the community from loan shark practices is to increase their income. According to him, financing and mentoring are the right steps to ensure that people not only obtain capital but are also able to grow their businesses more healthily.
Through PNM Mekaar, PNM aims to provide a safer option for those who have historically had limited access to formal financial services. Financing does not stand alone as a mere loan; it serves as a gateway to empowerment. There is mentoring, literacy, training, and a space for collective growth.
PNM believes that when ultra-micro women receive proper access to financing and sustainable mentoring, they are not only able to develop their businesses but also organise their families’ futures. From small daily businesses, the courage to be independent grows, allowing them to improve their lives and move further without having to resort to difficult shortcuts.