Healthcare, education, food assistance, and housing in Indonesia remain at the center of social welfare agenda. President Prabowo Subianto used a Plenary Cabinet Meeting on Monday (July 20) to present the latest figures, highlighting the growing reach of government programs that now serve millions of Indonesians.
One of the largest social welfare initiatives in Indonesia is the National Health Insurance (JKN) program, which currently provides healthcare coverage to 96.8 million people across the country.
“The National Health Insurance program covers 96.8 million people, nearly 100 million. That is 20 times larger than Singapore and three and a half times larger than Malaysia in terms of the number of people receiving health coverage,” Prabowo said.
The President also outlined several social assistance programs aimed at improving the welfare of low-income households.
According to Prabowo, the Family Hope Program (PKH) currently supports around 10 million families, representing approximately 40 million people. Beneficiaries receive monthly financial assistance ranging from Rp75,000 to Rp250,000.
Education assistance remains another major component of the government’s social protection efforts.
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Prabowo said the Indonesia Smart Program (PIP) currently reaches 22.1 million students from households in the first through fourth income deciles, which represent the country’s lowest-income groups.
Support also extends to higher education through the Indonesia Smart Card for Higher Education (KIP Kuliah). The program currently assists 1.2 million university students by providing monthly living allowances ranging from Rp800,000 to Rp1.4 million. It also covers their single tuition fees (UKT), which are paid directly to universities.
“The Indonesia Smart Card supports 1.2 million university students with living allowances of Rp800,000 to Rp1.4 million per month. They are exempt from paying tuition fees because the government pays the single tuition fee directly to universities. Meanwhile, the Indonesia Smart Program reaches 22.1 million students from the first, second, third, and fourth income deciles, which represent the lowest-income groups. This demonstrates our extraordinary commitment to supporting the poor,” he said.
Food assistance remains another key pillar of the government’s welfare programs.
The Basic Food Card currently benefits 18.25 million families, with each household receiving Rp200,000 every month to help cover basic food expenses.
Meanwhile, the Social Rehabilitation Assistance (Atensi) program provides support to around 83,000 beneficiaries across Indonesia.
The government also continues to invest in improving housing conditions through the Self-Help Housing Stimulant Assistance Program (BSPS). Under the program, approximately 400,000 beneficiaries receive Rp20 million per house to support home improvement projects.
Looking ahead, Prabowo said the government is reviewing ways to expand the BSPS program so that housing assistance can reach more families.
One proposal being considered is replacing cash assistance with building materials. According to the President, providing cement, roof tiles, timber, or light steel instead of direct cash payments could allow the available budget to support a larger number of beneficiaries.
“I have asked the Minister of Housing (Maruarar Sirait) and the Minister of Social Affairs (Saifullah Yusuf) to review whether we can increase the number of beneficiaries by reducing the assistance index. Perhaps instead of giving cash, we could provide building materials such as cement, roof tiles, timber, or light steel so that more people can receive assistance,” Prabowo said.
