Government prepares operational decree for Red and White Village Cooperative

JAKARTA - The government is preparing a Presidential Regulation or Perpres to strengthen the operations of the Red and White Village Cooperative. The rules are expected to be a legal umbrella so that thousands of cooperatives that have started to run have clearer operational guidelines.

Minister of Cooperatives Ferry Juliantono said the proposal was one of the main recommendations in a coordination meeting with the Presidential Chief of Staff, Agrinas Pangan Nusantara, and representatives of the TNI at the Presidential Palace Complex, Jakarta, Friday, June 26.

According to Ferry, the Red and White Village Cooperative program is now entering the physical development stage as well as the improvement of operational systems after the government previously launched 1,061 pilot cooperatives in Nganjuk Regency.

"We received a lot of important input for the improvement of the program, including the need for a Presidential Regulation on the operationalization of the Red and White Village Cooperative," said Ferry.

He emphasized that the government did not want the program to stop at the launch stage. Evaluations will continue to be carried out so that weaknesses that are still found can be immediately repaired.

Input from the Presidential Staff Office, Agrinas, and TNI elements is said to be the material to improve cooperative governance, ranging from organizational readiness to operational implementation in the field.

Ferry said the government also continued to introspect the implementation of the program so that the target of forming cooperatives really benefits the rural community.

According to Ferry, gradual improvement is an important part so that cooperatives are able to develop as a center of village economic activities, not just meeting the target of establishing institutions.