Sharia Economy Becomes Pathway for Underprivileged Mothers to Advance

The phenomenon of mothers becoming the backbone of family economies is no longer a new occurrence in Indonesia. As an effort to improve the welfare of women who depend on their small businesses for a living, various institutions have collaborated to create programmes in line with the Asta Cita mandate to eradicate poverty and promote economic equality.

The Mba Maya (Mentoring and Empowering) programme, for instance, provides Sharia-based business mentoring to women involved in MSMEs. This programme also aims to open access to ongoing training for underprivileged mothers.

This step is a collaboration between PT Permodalan Nasional Madani (PNM) and the Sharia Economy Society (MES) to strengthen the economic empowerment of underprivileged women, who form the majority of PNM’s customers, enabling them to develop their businesses and advance. The Mba Maya programme was officially launched on Tuesday, 6 May 2026, with more than 30,000 PNM customers participating in a hybrid format, both offline and online.

PNM and MES aim to strengthen the role of the Sharia economy as one of the drivers of women’s business independence in Indonesia, carrying the campaign ‘Blessed Business within the Framework of Sharia Economy’ in the Mba Maya programme. This programme is part of efforts to expand the impact of mentoring for ultra-micro business actors, which is the focus of PNM’s financing.

Currently, 73% of PNM’s financing is Sharia-based and has facilitated more than 2,300 halal certifications for customer businesses.

‘We (PNM) are committed to continuing to drive women’s empowerment, especially through the Sharia ecosystem. This is our concrete step to support women’s economic empowerment in Indonesia,’ said PNM’s President Director, Arief Mulyadi, quoted from a written statement on Thursday, 7 May 2026.

Arief explained that the Mba Maya programme will focus on enhancing women’s business capacity through ongoing training and mentoring. This programme is also a continuation of previous initiatives titled #CariTauLangkahBaru, which was run to expand mentoring for flagship customers.

Cooperatives Minister Ferry Juliantono, who also serves as the Daily Chairman of the MES Central Board, appreciated PNM’s step in presenting an empowerment programme targeting grassroots communities. He emphasised that the Mba Maya programme aligns with President Prabowo’s Asta Cita, namely building from the village and from the bottom for economic equality and poverty eradication.