Minister Zulhas guarantees village cooperatives will not kill off small businesses

Jakarta (ANTARA) – Coordinating Minister for Food Affairs Zulkifli Hasan has assured that the Red and White Village/Neighbourhood Cooperatives (Koperasi Desa/Kelurahan Merah Putih, KDKMP) will not put residents’ small shops or similar micro, small and medium enterprises (UMKM) out of business.

“Let me explain: these village cooperatives are not shops, not supermarkets. So there is no need to worry — warung, retailers and the like will not be affected. They can complement one another,” said Zulhas, as Zulkifli Hasan is familiarly known, at a press conference on the draft Presidential Regulation on the Governance of KDKMP held in Jakarta on Tuesday.

Zulhas explained that the function of the Red and White Village/Neighbourhood Cooperatives is to serve as government infrastructure for distributing subsidised goods and government assistance items.

In addition, he said KDKMP will also act as an off-taker, or buyer, of agricultural products such as rice and unhusked grain.

“If the government sets the price of unhusked rice in a region at Rp6,500 but middlemen are in fact buying it at Rp5,000, then the red and white cooperative can buy it at Rp6,500, in cooperation with Bulog,” said Zulhas.

Going forward, he added, if KDKMP develops well, it could enable the development of tourist villages, thematic villages and other initiatives.

The government targets around 25,000 Red and White Village Cooperatives to begin operating between August and September 2026, with the figure targeted to rise to 35,862 units by the end of the year.

Zulhas expressed hope that the Presidential Regulation (Perpres) governing the management of KDKMP can be finalised this week to serve as the operational basis for the programme.

“Hopefully the governance rules will be completed this week so that everyone has the same guidelines,” said Zulhas.