Lampung Governor Promotes Cooperatives as Drivers of Economy and Downstreaming
The Governor of Lampung, Rahmat Mirzani Djausal, has emphasised the importance of implementing the Merah Putih Village/Ward Cooperatives (KDMP) as a primary instrument for economic equality and the downstreaming of local rural potential. This was stated during the KDMP National Seminar held at the Semergou Building, Bandar Lampung Mayor’s Office.
In his address, Mirza highlighted the imbalance in capital circulation currently occurring in rural areas, where 70 per cent of money flow is absorbed by urban regions. This is despite the fact that 70 per cent of Lampung’s population resides in villages that possess significant national food commodity potential, ranging from cassava and maize to paddy.
“In the past, the understanding of cooperatives in villages was merely as savings and loan institutions, where people borrowed money with high interest rates. In reality, their function is far greater than that,” Mirza said in a written statement on Saturday (5/9/2026).
“Cooperatives are one of the levers to ensure that the prosperity present in Lampung Province reaches the villages,” he added.
Mirza explained that to realise this independence, the Lampung Provincial Government has prepared the ‘500 Advanced Villages’ programme, which focuses on commodity downstreaming and is targeted for completion by 2027, featuring integrated operators under the KDMP. Currently, the achievement of KDMP formation and management in Lampung has recorded an excellent performance at the national level.
“Our Lampung Province ranks fourth nationally and first outside of Java,” Mirza asserted.
As a concrete short-term step, Mirza has instructed the management of local paddy. To prevent the practice of Lampung’s paddy supply flowing to Java—which impacts rice price surges in the region—the KDMP is targeted to begin absorbing paddy directly from farmers.
“God willing, by next week, we target that where there is a harvest, there will be a KDMP. The KDMP will absorb the paddy so it no longer leaves for Java. We are breaking the supply chain,” Mirza emphasised.
In conclusion, Mirza recalled a message from Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto regarding the importance of leadership oriented towards statecraft, or the art of managing regional wealth. He requested that village heads in Lampung possess mature managerial capacity to convert village resources into tangible welfare for the wider community.
Meanwhile, in his opening remarks at the seminar, the Minister of Villages and Regional Development, Yandri Susanto, emphasised that the formation of the KDMP is an embodiment of the 6th ‘Asta Cita’ of Prabowo, aimed at eradicating poverty and achieving economic equality from the bottom up.
“Essentially, we want to oversee these Merah Putih Ward Cooperatives together. This is a flagship programme of President Prabowo to ensure the success of the 6th Asta Cita, which is building from the villages and from the bottom to achieve economic equality and poverty eradication,” said Yandri.
Yandri quoted the views of Proclamator Mohammad Hatta regarding the strength of the village economy as the nation’s foundation.
“This is perhaps what Bung Hatta envisioned: that Indonesia will not shine brightly with only one large torch at Monas, Jakarta, but Indonesia will be prosperous and well-off with the small candles found in the villages. Those candles, God willing, are the Merah Putih Village and Ward Cooperatives,” Yandri said.
Yandri also addressed various pieces of misinformation circulating on social media regarding the existence of village cooperatives. He asserted that the government has no intention of stifling small community businesses.
“So, if there are current issues claiming that the Minister of Villages or the Coordinating Minister for Food Security is closing down local stalls, that is hoax, ladies and gentlemen. Because the Minister of Villages and the Coordinating Minister for Food Security have never spoken of closing village stalls. On the contrary, we want everyone to rise,” Yandri stated.
“That is President Prabowo’s message. We are not supermen, but we are a superteam, including in the revival of the people’s economy,” he concluded.