Indonesia, Germany Collaborate on Social Security Inclusive

Jakarta, VIVA – The Ministry of National Development Planning (PPN)/Bappenas and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) held the Pre-Final Dissemination Forum for Studies in the Field of Social Security.

Muhammad Cholifihani, Director of Population and Social Security at the Ministry of PPN/Bappenas, explained that the forum is part of efforts to promote cross-sector synergy and stakeholder involvement in realizing an inclusive, sustainable, and data-driven social security system.

Under the theme 'Bringing Research into Social Security Policy in Indonesia,' he emphasized that the forum aims to support the refinement of the preliminary draft of the 2025–2029 National Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMN) and Social Security Reform.

"This forum marks the culmination of a series of activities at the conclusion of the Social Protection Programme (SPP), which will end in December 2024," said Cholifihani on Thursday (Dec 19).

The Pre-Final Dissemination Forum for Studies in the Field of Social Security presented nine studies on social security conducted by Bappenas and GIZ Indonesia.

The two entities also collaborated with various research institutions and hosted a panel discussion to gather valuable input from social security experts and stakeholders.

"These studies serve as a foundation and recommendation for drafting the 2025–2029 RPJMN and the Government Work Plan (RKP)," he remarked.

He stressed that social security reform is one of the national strategic agendas and a crucial step toward expanding the coverage of social security programs for all Indonesians.

According to him, the implementation of the National Social Security System (SJSN) in Indonesia still faces complex challenges, ranging from demographic shifts to the sustainability of program funding.

To address these challenges, the Indonesian government, through the Ministry of PPN/Bappenas, in collaboration with the German government via GIZ Indonesia, established a bilateral partnership under the Social Protection Programme project, which includes nine data-driven strategic studies.

"These studies are expected to serve as key considerations in determining the direction of social security reforms to make them more inclusive, efficient, and sustainable," he emphasized.

As information, the event was attended by various cross-sector ministries and agencies, national and international development partners such as the National Team for the Acceleration of Poverty Reduction (TNP2K), the World Bank, and the International Labour Organization (ILO), as well as academics and social security observers in Indonesia.