Minister Rini: Digital Transformation Must Solve Citizens' Problems, Not Just Launch Apps

The digitalisation of social protection is being accelerated to speed up and simplify public access to government assistance. The government believes the success of digital transformation is not measured by the number of applications created, but by the ability of technology to solve citizens’ problems and bring services closer to the people. “Carrying one main spirit, ‘Data is Matched. Citizens’ Rights are Ensured’, we are here to ensure that the acceleration of digital social protection is not merely a technocratic idea, but a real movement that is easy, inclusive, and on target for all Indonesian people,” said Minister of Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform Rini Widyantini in a statement on Wednesday. Rini stated that this digital transformation aligns with President Prabowo Subianto’s directive emphasising the importance of reducing the use of disconnected government applications. The government is also encouraged to deliver services to the public through technology. According to Rini, the benchmark for success is not how many applications have been launched, but how many of the citizens’ difficulties can be resolved. Technology should not simply move complexity from the counter to the screen; it should cut stages, connect data, and bring services closer to the public. Therefore, the government is building a Digital Public Infrastructure, a shared digital foundation that is secure, standardised, and can be used across services. Digital identity is used to verify citizens’ identities, while data exchange means the public does not need to submit the same information repeatedly. A digital payment system is also part of this foundation so that assistance can be received quickly, safely, and recorded. This foundation is not intended for a single application or ministry, but can be shared for various service needs. Social protection is one of the key applications, as this is where the quality of government integration is directly tested by people’s lives. On this occasion, Rini noted that Sumedang Regency has shown progress in implementing social protection data collection. A total of 111,077 family heads have been registered on the Social Protection Portal, reaching 24.23% of the total 458,418 family heads. This demonstrates present leadership, growing collaboration at the sub-district to village level, and maintained momentum. As many as 91.91% of the people registered on the Social Protection Portal did so through agent assistance. Of the 3,847 agents deployed in Sumedang, 59.24% have been actively assisting the public door-to-door. The agents not only help with the registration process but also explain procedures in language easily understood by the public. They accompany residents from the initial stage until the process is complete and provide understanding about data security and the data collection process. “Hopefully, the steps we start and strengthen from Sumedang today will become an example that digital government is not just about making the state look more modern, but about making the state more present and the people’s lives easier,” said Rini. Meanwhile, Sumedang Regent Dony Ahmad Munir expressed appreciation to the Minister for reviewing the social protection data collection in his region. The Sumedang Regency Government expressed support for the social protection programme, which is considered to have an impact on beneficiary communities. “Through data collection, the social protection programme can ensure its targeting accuracy and certainly make the budget more efficient, which will ultimately impact development in our country,” said Dony.