Jakarta (ANTARA) - Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration Minister Abdul Halim Iskandar highlighted that community participation is the key to success in village development.

“The key to success in village development, be it in planning, implementation, and supervision, is involving community participation,” he noted in a statement from his ministry on Friday.

The minister conveyed the statement at the Coordination Meeting for Mentoring of Professional Guidance Workers in Bengkulu on Thursday (March 7).

Iskandar emphasized that village development will be successful if community participation in public policy-making in villages is more guaranteed in terms of quantity and quality, as it can provide certainty to the community that none of their problems and needs will be left behind.

He believes the community can also play an active role in monitoring development results in stages.

According to the minister, one proof of the success of village development that involves community participation is the improvement in performance and transparency of village governments in Indonesia since 2014.

On that occasion, he also reminded village governments of the importance of building community awareness and knowledge on the planning of village development, which can be done through the dissemination of information and education.

Awareness and knowledge are deemed able to help the community gain an understanding of the importance of their participation and contribution in village development.

The minister expressed hope that village governments would maximize community participation to realize equal access and utilization of resources.

In addition, community participation is expected to be able to ensure that village development planning has taken into account the needs and aspirations of all levels of society, including those from vulnerable and marginalized groups.

Thus, equal access to infrastructure, public services, and resources would be achieved, and social inequality in villages would also be reduced.

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Translator: Tri Meilani, Raka Adji
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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