Trade Minister Encourages Modern Retailers to Supply Goods to Village Cooperatives
The Minister of Trade, Budi Santoso, encouraged the Merah Putih Village Cooperative to facilitate the distribution of modern retail products. “This is actually a good opportunity for mutual collaboration with minimarkets and distributors to distribute their products through village cooperatives,” said Budi at the Ministry of Trade office, Thursday, February 26, 2026.
Budi based this encouragement on the village cooperative’s objective to simplify distribution access for the community. The practice of partnering with modern retailers is not new. Budi cited the example of small shop owners who obtain their merchandise from modern retailers. “This practice still applies to small shops today,” he said.
In addition, Budi stated that village cooperatives have the advantage of functioning as minimarkets with a wider variety of products. He mentioned that several village cooperatives sell agricultural tools, fertilizers, and medicines. In addition to selling products, village cooperatives also provide services such as clinics and export services.
Previously, the Minister of Cooperatives, Ferry Juliantono, stated that the government does not plan to halt the expansion of Alfamart and Indomaret. Instead, the government will regulate the presence of minimarkets, especially in rural areas.
He also believes that villages should not be dominated by modern retailers because they already have the Merah Putih Village/Sub-district Cooperatives (Kopdes). “Let the money circulate in the village and not go to shareholders in Jakarta,” he said in Jakarta on Saturday, February 21, 2026, as quoted by Antara.
Ferry made these comments in response to reports that the government would halt the expansion of modern retailers following the operation of the Merah Putih Village Cooperative. “I have heard from many regional heads that they will impose a moratorium on regulations regarding the presence of modern retailers such as Indomaret and Alfamart and that these regulations need to be revised.”
The Minister of Villages and Transmigration, Yandri Susanto, previously stated that the Merah Putih Village Cooperative is one of the solutions to address the issue of modern retail dominance in villages. “The Kopdes, a national strategic program, I believe is one of the keys to ensuring that economic services are not controlled by a few people,” he said during a working meeting with Commission V of the DPR RI at the Parliament Complex, Jakarta, Wednesday, November 12, 2025, as quoted by Antara.
Yandri made these comments in response to a question from Commission V of the DPR RI regarding efforts to address the dominance of modern retailers, such as Indomaret and Alfamart, which threaten the sustainability of village-owned MSMEs. He is also confident that the Village Cooperative will become a center for the local economy that can meet various needs of villagers, from basic necessities, fertilizers, to LPG.
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