Kaltara Provincial Government Prepares IDR 239 Billion, Pursues Poverty Reduction

TANJUNG SELOR The Provincial Government (Pemprov) of North Kalimantan (Kaltara) has prepared a budget of IDR 239 billion in 2025 for poverty reduction programs.

Head of the Regional Development Planning Agency for Research and Development (Bappeda Litbang), Bertius revealed, the funds will be carried out through 15 Regional Apparatus Organizations (OPD) with various sub-activities, ranging from infrastructure development, improving health services, to community services.

"Bappeda does not handle technical activities directly. However, it has an important role as a coordinator," said Bertius, Monday (22/9/2025).

"Bappeda Litbang Kaltara facilitates the preparation of action plans, coordination meetings, and ensures that data can enter and be reported to the center. Technical interventions are still carried out by the relevant OPD," he added.

Bertius explained that a number of OPDs have shared roles according to their fields, such as the PUPR Office focusing on providing sanitation, habitable houses, and access to clean water. Then, the Health Service (Dinkes) ensures that posyandu services run well, while the DPMD forms posyandu institutions at the village level.

"We share the role, Bappeda ensures the action plan runs. If there are obstacles, we will close it together," he explained.

However, this effort still faces challenges. One of them is the high number of newcomers in Kaltara who also influence the poverty rate. We cannot prohibit people from entering. That is a challenge in itself," he said.

He emphasized that based on data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), the poverty rate in Kaltara actually increased. In September 2024, it was recorded at 5.38 percent or around 14 thousand people. However, in March 2025, the figure rose to 5.54 percent.

"It should have gone down, but instead it went up. This is a problem that we must address together," he said.

He added that this increase in poverty could not be separated from the slowdown in regional economic growth, which was influenced by budget adjustments and the slowdown in government spending.

The Kaltara economy still relies heavily on government spending. If spending is slow, the economy will automatically slow down. The impact is immediate to the community," he said.

Bertius gave an example, when the disbursement of employee allowances (TPP) is late, people's purchasing power also decreases. "Employees do not shop, automatically the economic turnover is sluggish. It immediately looks like the impact," he concluded.