“Let us encourage university graduates who are jobless in cities to return to their hometowns. Afterwards, it is important to train them to become managers or operators of Red and White Village Cooperatives,” he stated on Monday.
Susanto made the statement during an event to disseminate information on Presidential Instruction No. 9 of 2025, as broadcast on his ministry’s YouTube channel in Jakarta.
In his remarks, the minister also urged village heads to effectively manage the planned cooperatives by employing laid-off skilled workers and retired professionals.
The former deputy speaker of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) emphasized the importance of prioritizing local human resources in managing the cooperatives.
“We will prioritize employing people from the host villages, including those living in cities and retired professionals,” he noted.
Related news: Village cooperatives to strengthen village-run enterprises: Minister
Earlier, President Prabowo Subianto issued the aforementioned instruction to accelerate the establishment of rural cooperatives under the Red and White Village Cooperatives program.
Through the instruction, President Prabowo set a target to form up to 80 thousand Red and White Cooperatives across Indonesia.
According to the instruction, the program aims to strengthen food self-sufficiency, promote economic equality, and support the development of self-reliant villages as part of the Golden Indonesia 2045 vision.
The president envisioned the Red and White Cooperatives as community hubs offering economic and social services, such as affordable basic goods, savings and loans, village clinics and pharmacies, cold storage for agriculture and fishery products, and logistics distribution.
He also outlined responsibilities for various ministries and regional governments in implementing the program, such as the Cooperatives Ministry tasked with developing business models and preparing human resources, while the Villages Ministry is responsible for facilitating land acquisition and raising support and awareness about the program in rural areas.
Related news: Government aims to establish 80 thousand village cooperatives by June
Translator: Tri M, Tegar Nurfitra
Editor: Yuni Arisandy Sinaga
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