Hours-Long Journeys Across Seas and Through Forests to Bring Financial Services to 3T Regions

In many parts of Indonesia, particularly in the frontier, outermost, and disadvantaged (3T) regions, access to financial services still means hours-long journeys across the sea, traversing mountains, penetrating forests, or waiting for favourable weather just to reach formal financial services. In areas such as the small islands of Natuna, the Talaud Islands, and Maluku, the highlands of Papua, the interior of Kalimantan, and border villages in Nusa Tenggara, geographical challenges pose a real obstacle to equal economic opportunity. Yet it is in these hard-to-reach places that the spirit of development is tested, and PT Permodalan Nasional Madani (Persero) has stepped forward to contribute to the nation. PNM is present through 4,035 units, 516 of which are located in 3T regions, meaning more than 10 per cent of the company’s service network reaches areas with challenging terrain, according to PNM President Director Kindaris. Kindaris explained that when underprivileged communities, especially women ultra-micro entrepreneurs, gain access to financing and mentoring, what grows is not only their businesses but also self-confidence, family independence, and the circulation of the village economy. Therefore, expanding service coverage to 3T regions is not merely business expansion but a tangible form of delivering economic justice. Under the auspices of Danantara Indonesia, PNM views this transformation momentum as an opportunity to strengthen its role as a development agent. The Danantara ecosystem support opens up wider collaboration, accelerates service innovation, strengthens operational capacity, and encourages synergy among state-owned enterprises so that financing and empowerment can reach more people who have so far been outside the radar of formal financial services. Danantara Indonesia’s Chief Operating Officer and Head of BP BUMN Dony Oskaria urged continued direction of financing support to productive sectors that can create jobs, enhance competitiveness, and deliver real impact to the community, including the empowerment of MSMEs. For PNM, financing is only the first step. What sets it apart is the sustainability of empowerment. Business mentoring, entrepreneurial capacity building, financial literacy, and character development form the foundation so that every loan truly transforms the quality of life of its customers. This approach has enabled millions of underprivileged women not only to sustain their businesses but also to create new jobs and become drivers of the economy in their communities.