Government Optimistic That Red and White Village Cooperatives Will Be Handled Professionally and Credibly

Semarang – The government has expressed its confidence that the program to establish 80 thousand Red and White Village Cooperatives will be managed professionally, transparently, and credibly.

The Minister of Cooperatives, Budi Arie Setiadi, emphasized that the involvement of various ministries, institutions, and regional governments is proof of the government’s seriousness in presenting village cooperatives that are useful for the community.

“The enemy of the Red and White Village Cooperatives is fear, suspicion, and doubt. In fact, this country was built on optimism, not doubt,” said Budi Arie in the Dialogue on the Acceleration of Village/Sub-District Deliberations Specifically for the Establishment of Red and White Village Cooperatives throughout Central Java, in Semarang.

Budie Arie added that the spirit of establishing this cooperative cannot be separated from the commitment of President Prabowo Subianto. He encouraged the community not to get caught up in negative stereotypes, but to be actively involved in realizing independent cooperatives.

“Because we are all fighters. This country was built by fighters and Central Java is known as a fighter province,” he said.

According to Budi Arie, the management of the cooperative will be carried out transparently with the appointment of administrators through a special village deliberation mechanism (musdesus), as well as participatory supervision involving elements of the village community.

He also emphasized the need for assistance from BUMN such as PT Bank Rakyat Indonesia (Persero) Tbk. And PT Pos Indonesia (Persero) to support cooperative business activities.

“What is certain is that the Red and White Cabinet government will not let go,” he said.

On a different occasion, the Minister of Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions and Transmigration (Mendes PDTT), Yandri Susanto stated that the government is accelerating the formation of cooperatives through the implementation of Musdesus in all villages.

“We are holding a Musdesus with a single agenda of establishing the Red and White Village Cooperative. Who are the participants, who invited them, what is the agenda, there is already a circular,” he said.

Yandri also acknowledged the technical challenges such as limited funds for making notarial deeds. To overcome this, the government has allowed villages to use a maximum of 3 percent of Village Funds as an operational budget, including for notary fees.

He also mentioned that in several regions, the financing has been assisted by CSR, governors, or regents.

The government is targeting all 75,000 villages in Indonesia to complete Musdesus before the end of May 2025. After that, the cooperatives will be registered as legal entities at the Ministry of Law and Human Rights. The next process includes mapping the village’s economic potential and appointing cooperative administrators through Musdesus, not directly.

Yandri also emphasized that a different approach will be applied in underdeveloped areas that have limited access and small populations.

“We want to combine. The handling will be different from advanced and independent villages,” he said.**