Indonesia expands social protection to reach more vulnerable groups

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Coordinating Minister for Community Empowerment Abdul Muhaimin Iskandar said the government is focusing on expanding and improving the targeting of social protection programs so that more people in need can receive assistance, particularly vulnerable groups that have been at risk of being left out of such programs.

"Accelerating social protection registration is an essential and inevitable part of our efforts to ensure that the programs reach the right beneficiaries," Muhaimin said in Jakarta on Thursday.

According to the minister, the expansion would be accompanied by accelerated registration and verification to ensure that various social protection benefits are distributed to the right beneficiaries.

He said registration would help the government identify the appropriate beneficiaries and verify their eligibility based on their respective circumstances.

"Social protection programs, particularly through social assistance, require continuously accurate data, and the digitalization of beneficiary data is a must," Muhaimin added.

Prospective beneficiaries, the minister said, would undergo eligibility assessments to ensure that they receive benefits appropriate to their needs.

The expansion of social protection must also take into account groups facing greater vulnerability, the minister said, adding that older people, persons with disabilities, and communities in underdeveloped, remote, and outermost regions must have access to social protection.

Muhaimin said the government's goal was not merely to increase the number of social protection beneficiaries, but to establish a cycle in which people are protected, recover, and become empowered, ultimately achieving self-reliance.

He expressed hope that social assistance programs could help develop beneficiaries' capacities and resources so that they could become self-reliant.

He added that social protection programs would be followed by stronger empowerment schemes.

People who receive social protection should be provided with support tailored to their needs to improve their capabilities and access to economic opportunities, enabling them to become self-reliant, Muhaimin said.

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Translator: Bayu Prasetyo
Editor: M Razi Rahman
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