Makassar Cooperative and SME Office Prioritises Korpri Cooperative Programme

The Makassar Cooperative and SME Office is making the establishment of a Korpri cooperative a key instrument to improve the welfare of civil servants within the city government. Head of the Makassar Cooperative and SME Office, Arlin Ariesta, stated that the city government, through Korpri, has made the cooperative’s formation a priority programme that is currently being prepared in stages. “Following the directive from the Chairperson of the Makassar City Korpri, we immediately carried out various stages, from discussion meetings, forming a team and management, to preparing all administrative procedures as the basis for establishing the Korpri cooperative,” he said. Arlin explained that the formation of the cooperative has a strong legal foundation, referring to provisions on cooperative development, Korpri regulations, and regulations from the Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs regarding cooperative administration. The educational activities being held are not only aimed at increasing civil servants’ understanding of cooperatives but also serve as an initial socialisation forum before the cooperative is officially formed. Arlin emphasised that Korpri not only functions as an organisation that unites civil servants but also has a responsibility to encourage the improvement of its members’ welfare through sustainable economic programmes. “Korpri has a moral and professional responsibility to ensure the welfare of its members. Future economic challenges require us to be more independent, wise, and collaborative. Therefore, the formation of the Korpri Cooperative is a solution we need to promote together,” he said. He hopes that secretaries of regional apparatuses, sub-district secretaries, and heads of general and personnel subdivisions can act as intermediaries in socialising the cooperative’s formation to all civil servants in their respective work environments. The Makassar City Cooperative and SME Office is also ready to assist all regional apparatuses through a team of cooperative extension workers to provide education and act as resource persons in every socialisation activity. According to him, the cooperative to be established has several strategic objectives, namely to become a safe, legal, and transparent financial institution expected to protect civil servants from illegal lending practices and meet members’ economic needs. “We want this cooperative to be a financial protector managed professionally so that all members have access to safe, legal, and transparent financial services. This way, civil servants can avoid the traps of unofficial financial institutions,” he explained. Furthermore, Arlin said the Korpri Cooperative is also designed to have modern wholesale or retail business units that provide basic necessities for civil servants at more affordable prices through an easy and integrated payment system. In addition, the cooperative will be developed based on digital technology, including the use of applications and digital banking services, while also serving as a platform for empowering SMEs managed by the families of Makassar City civil servants. “In the future, we are designing this cooperative to be adaptive to technological developments through application-based services and digital banking. We also want the cooperative to become a space for empowering SMEs owned by the families of Makassar City civil servants,” said Arlin.