Gov’t to Tackle Poverty through Holistic Approach

President Prabowo Subianto delivers his first State of the Nation Address at the Annual Session of the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) and the Joint Session of the House of Representatives (DPR) and the House of Regional Representatives (DPD) of the Republic of Indonesia at the Nusantara Building, Parliament Complex, Jakarta, Friday (08/15). (Photo by: BPMI of Presidential Secretariat)

President Prabowo Subianto underlined that his Cabinet is committed to tackling poverty through a holistic approach.

During the State of the Nation Address at the Annual Session of the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) and the Joint Session of the House of Representatives (DPR) and the House of Regional Representatives (DPD) of the Republic of Indonesia, President Prabowo said that one of the Government’s strategic measures is initiating the National Single Social and Economic Data (DTSEN) System.

“The DTSEN shall remain our guiding principle. We shall ensure that Government programs for the poor are precisely targeted. Through the DTSEN, we are able to identify those who are truly entitled to receive the benefits. We received reports that there were still wealthy individuals enjoying subsidies. From now on, we seek to ensure that it is targeted precisely,” the President said on Friday (08/15).

According to him, one of the Government’s efforts to break the chain of absolute poverty is the establishment of the People’s School. The Government has successfully built and opened 100 People’s Schools for the people in the lowest income decile.

“The students will be put in dorms. They will be provided with good quality education. This is our means to break the chain of poverty. Poor children, even if born to poor parents, must not be destined to remain poor. This is what we have been striving for, and this is what we are undertaking today,” he said.

In addition to the People’s School, the Government has also established the Garuda Excellence Shools and the Garuda Transformation Excellence Schools to close the gap in the fields of science and technology.

“The initial plan is to establish 20 Garuda Excellence Schools and 80 Garuda Transformation Excellence Schools. Existing schools will join this program. We have also added Integrated Taruna Nusantara Senior High Schools across the farthest reaches of our nation,” the President added.

Moreover, to fufill the need of medical workers, President Prabowo addressed a plan to expand the establishment of medical faculties across Indonesia.

“To address the shortage of medical doctors and specialists, this year we shall open 148 study programs in 57 medical faculties across Indonesia, consisting of 125 specialist programs and 23 sub-specialist programs. We will also add 25 general medical and dentistry programs, as well as increase the quota of medical students receiving scholarships,” he explained, adding that the Government has also renovated at least 13,800 general schools and 1,400 Islamic schools to increase the quality of education.

Moreover, the Government is supporting the learning process by distributing smart screens to schools and to the remote areas. (BPMI) (EST/MMB)