Using Deciles for Social Assistance Could Save Government Rp17.9 Trillion

The government could save between Rp14.4 trillion and Rp17.9 trillion in social assistance subsidies by using deciles to determine the target recipients of social aid.

In his presentation, Andy Kurniawan, an expert from the Ministry of Social Affairs, explained that according to research by the National Economic Council, 45% of the total social assistance subsidy budget is misallocated, while the remaining 55% is correctly targeted. The total budget for social assistance subsidies at the Ministry of Social Affairs is expected to reach Rp78 trillion in 2025.

He noted that these findings were made possible because the government has been transparent with data through the National Single Social and Economic Data (DTSEN). Speaking at the STIS Polytechnic of Statistics in Jakarta on Friday (11/09/2026), he stated, “This is actually not happening because of a lack of data transparency. In fact, it is because the government is being transparent.”

“From this alone, we can conclude—imagine if we did not have deciles, could we have identified that 45% is inaccurate? Therefore, it is crucial to be able to correct this misallocation,” he added.

Andy emphasised that the distribution of social assistance in Indonesia must accurately reach the intended recipients, as the government employs a targeted approach to providing social protection. He noted that this targeted approach carries the consequence of requiring highly accurate selection processes to determine who is eligible for aid.

“With a targeted approach, the challenge is that our data mining must be robust. The data must be accurate. There must be a ranking system, because a targeted approach demands that the government makes precise selections,” he concluded.