Ministry of Social Affairs: Professionalism of Social Welfare Institutions Key to Improving Service Quality
The Ministry of Social Affairs has emphasised strengthening the professionalism of Social Welfare Institutions (LKS) to guarantee the optimal fulfilment of rights for Social Welfare Service Recipients (PPKS) across Indonesia.
Speaking after the peak event of the 59th Anniversary of the Indonesian National Council for Social Welfare (DNIKS) in Jakarta on Friday, Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf asserted that the accreditation of institutions and human resources is the main key to LKS professionalism.
“We want LKS to be able to serve social welfare service recipients earnestly, so that they obtain their rights to protection, respect, as well as rehabilitation and empowerment,” he said.
For this reason, the Ministry of Social Affairs continues to strengthen collaboration with community organisations such as DNIKS and regional governments to assist and supervise the operations of LKS managers. Supervision and assistance are considered important because previously, based on the ministry’s internal data collection, it was found that many LKS were not accredited, and more than 2,000 institutions were fictitious, existing only with a signboard. Data also showed that more than 85 per cent of children in orphanages were not orphans, but still had one parent.
Saifullah stressed that in the future, no LKS should commit violations or irregularities, particularly forms of physical or sexual violence against the residents they serve. To this end, the Ministry of Social Affairs is currently revising the Minister of Social Affairs Regulation so that accreditation becomes a quality assurance instrument for care, where LKS that violate the rules will face strict sanctions, while those that meet standards will be rewarded.
“Also, do not use LKS just to seek funds. Do not just utilise LKS on certain occasions, and after the event is over, no one is served anymore, because it is only to serve the interests of the respective managers,” said Saifullah. The Minister added that he appreciates the DNIKS management for consistently embracing community figures to present credible and quality LKS.