JAKARTA – The Minister of Villages and Development of Disadvantaged Regions (Mendes PDT), Yandri Susanto, emphasized that the Ministry, together with 10 Village Associations, will continuously safeguard and steer President Prabowo Subianto's priority initiatives, particularly the Merah Putih Village/Sub-district Cooperative (KDKMP) program.

He made the remarks while attending a Limited Coordination Meeting (Rakortas) presided over by the Coordinating Minister for Food Affairs, Zulkifli Hasan, at the main meeting room of the Coordinating Ministry for Food Affairs, Jakarta, on Tuesday (July 28, 2026).

Minister Yandri further elaborated that under the existing design of the KDKMP, his team will actively involve village administrations—comprising village heads, Village Consultative Councils (BPD), and village apparatuses. He highlighted that village-level involvement is vital to securing the success of this flagship program.

"Because ultimately, whether these village cooperatives succeed or fail depends heavily on the full support of the rural populace, including their village local governments," Minister Yandri stated.

To that end, the Ministry of Villages and PDT, alongside the 10 Village Associations, will continuously conduct public outreach programs across rural communities. This approach ensures that rural residents gain a direct and clear understanding of the KDKMP program straight from the primary source.

Meanwhile, Coordinating Minister for Food Affairs Zulkifli Hasan remarked that the KDKMP is a highly significant, fundamental, and large-scale national initiative. Consequently, it naturally comes with substantial challenges that require rigorous efforts to realize.

Nevertheless, Minister Zulhas added, establishing 83,000 cooperatives across villages and sub-districts nationwide will empower local communities, transforming these KDKMP units into vibrant new epicenters of economic growth throughout Indonesia.

"We will empower 83,000 villages and sub-districts to become new hubs of economic growth. Building this certainly presents many challenges, but today we have begun formulating the frameworks together. Insya Allah, by October 2026, the tangible impact of the Merah Putih Village Cooperative will already be felt directly within the community," Minister Zulhas stated.

For context, the Limited Coordination Meeting focused on resolving pending issues across various ministries, state agencies, and institutions concerning the draft Presidential Regulation (Perpres) on the Governance and Operationalization of the Merah Putih Village/Sub-district Cooperative (KDKMP).

The high-profile coordination meeting was also attended by the Minister of Cooperatives Ferry Juliantono, Minister of Agriculture Andi Amran Sulaiman, Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries Sakti Wahyu Trenggono, Minister of Health Budi Gunadi Sadikin, Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf, President Director of Agrinas Pangan Nusantara Joao Mota, alongside leaders from related state institutions.

Photo: Didi/Kemendes PDT 
Text: Rifqi/Kemendes PDT