“The government guarantee acts more as a confidence trigger than a determinant of success,” said Rizal, head of the Center for Macroeconomics and Finance at Indef, in Jakarta on Friday.
He said the main hurdles are the cooperatives’ lack of business track records, weak financial governance, and limited cash flow discipline. As long as details on the first-loss guarantee—such as risk bearers, coverage limits, and claim processing—remain unclear, banks will stay cautious.
“Himbara will extend credit selectively and on a limited scale,” Rizal said. “The guarantee must be backed by institutional design and sound risk management, not just policy rhetoric.”
He noted that the Rp216 trillion ($13 billion) financing allocation should genuinely boost rural productivity rather than merely distribute funds. The program, he said, should focus on performance-based lending tied to real economic output.
Rizal proposed a blended finance model, with Danantara or the Finance Ministry covering the first-loss tranche of 10–20 percent, Jamkrindo or Askrindo taking the second-loss layer, and banks maintaining senior tranches under prudent lending principles.
Related news: Govt to establish village cooperatives as shield against loan sharks
Village funds, he suggested, could serve as cash flow support through escrow or auto-debit systems from local government accounts, ensuring repayment discipline and reducing liquidity risk.
He urged the program to prioritize cooperatives with strong multiplier effects—such as logistics hubs, rice mills, food distribution, community solar projects, and cold storage for agriculture and fisheries.
Rizal recommended starting with 1,000 pilot cooperatives, with disbursement capped at 14 days and NPLs under 3 percent. If repayment rates exceed 92 percent, expansion could reach 10,000–15,000 cooperatives.
Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa said the government has allocated Rp200 trillion, plus Rp16 trillion in reserve, for Kopdes Merah Putih loans, charging only a 2 percent fee once disbursed.
Related news: Himbara targets credit expansion in four priority sectors
Translator: Primayanti
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
Copyright © ANTARA 2025
