Minister Ara Admits SLIK Hurdles Deny Many Indonesians Access to Home Loans

Minister of Housing and Settlement Maruarar Sirait, known as Ara, has admitted that problems with the Financial Information Service System (SLIK) frequently cause many people to lose the opportunity to obtain housing credit. He said he has repeatedly encountered this issue in communities after visiting subsidised housing projects 40 times, including in Papua, Kalimantan, Sulawesi, West Nusa Tenggara, West Java, Central Java, East Java, North Sumatra, South Sulawesi, and North Sulawesi. “One of the main complaints is about SLIK, which hinders people from getting an opportunity,” Ara said at the SLIK system enhancement event at the Bank Indonesia building in Jakarta on Monday. He expressed hope that the launch of the optimised SLIK, in collaboration with the Financial Services Authority (OJK), would expand access to financing for low-income communities (MBR) and MSMEs, while also supporting the acceleration of the Three Million Houses Programme. “Today, that barrier has been removed by the OJK Chairman and his team,” he stated. Ara said the government continues to strive to present policies that favour low-income communities so they can more easily own homes. In addition to increasing the subsidised housing quota to 350,000 units, the government is also providing various facilities such as exemption from the Land and Building Rights Acquisition Fee (BPHTB), Building Approval (PBG), and Government-borne Value Added Tax (PPN DTP). Ara also expressed his appreciation to the Chairman of the OJK Board of Commissioners, Friderica Widyasari Dewi, and her staff for responding to the input regarding the obstacles people face in accessing subsidised housing finance. “I extend my deepest gratitude to the OJK Chairman and all her staff. Without the OJK daring to make today’s decision, there would be no good opportunity for low-income communities,” Ara said. “The alignment with the people must be clear, while still prioritising the principle of prudence.”