Bridging the Gaps: Social Protection in Indonesia’s Remote Areas Faces Key Challenges

Despite Indonesia’s significant progress in reducing poverty, the country’s most remote areas continue to face major challenges in accessing social protection programs. The report Social Protection Inclusion in Indonesia’s Remote Areas highlights key barriers, including coverage gaps, communication hurdles, and difficult registration processes. Recommendations to address these issues include improving data disaggregation, enhancing outreach efforts, and developing more effective benefit delivery systems.

Indonesia has made remarkable strides in expanding its social protection system in recent years, aiming to lift millions out of poverty. But for the country’s most remote areas, especially in rural provinces like Nusa Tenggara Timur and Papua, the benefits of these programs often remain out of reach. A report titled Social Protection Inclusion in Indonesia’s Remote Areas - Identifying and Addressing Gaps and Challenges published by the World Bank, highlights the challenges and offers recommendations to ensure the country’s most vulnerable populations are not left behind.

Coverage Gaps in Remote Regions

While urban Indonesia has seen poverty rates decline dramatically over the past decade, rural areas continue to struggle. The report notes that poverty rates in 2023 stood at 12.2 percent in rural regions compared to just 7.3 percent in urban areas. For provinces like Papua, poverty was a staggering 34.5 percent. The main reason behind this disparity is the lack of access to social protection programs.

Indonesia’s social protection system includes programs such as the Family Hope Program (PKH), which provides conditional cash transfers to families in need, and Program Sembako, a food assistance initiative. These programs, alongside the Smart Indonesia Program (PIP) aimed at assisting poor students, have been instrumental in reducing poverty at a national level. However, many rural and remote regions, particularly those classified as “hard-to-reach,” still lack sufficient program coverage due to poor infrastructure and logistical challenges.

A critical issue raised in the report is the absence of data that disaggregates remote from non-remote areas. This lack of precision makes it difficult for local governments to target the right populations effectively. Without clear data, it becomes nearly impossible to assess how well social protection programs are working in these areas and where coverage gaps exist.

Outreach and Communication Hurdles

In Indonesia’s remote regions, reaching eligible beneficiaries with information about available social protection programs remains a daunting task. According to the report, many local officials are aware of the programs but are unable to deliver this information to the residents who need it the most. Poor mobile phone and internet connectivity further hampers outreach efforts, as many villages lack reliable communication infrastructure.

Programs like PKH and Program Sembako rely heavily on district-level social welfare officers and local facilitators. These officials are tasked with traveling to far-flung villages to inform and enroll eligible families. However, given the remote locations, this often proves difficult. Many sub-district officials are left without sufficient resources, such as transportation or even fuel, to make these trips regularly. As a result, eligible households remain unaware of their entitlements.

The report emphasizes the importance of creating a targeted communication strategy, particularly in local languages. By working with community leaders, religious groups, and social organizations, social protection programs could more effectively spread awareness. Engaging with local networks that are already embedded in these communities can help bridge the communication gap.

Intake and Registration: A Long Way to Go

Even when families in remote areas are informed about the available social protection programs, many face barriers during the registration process. The National Social Welfare Database (DTKS), which is used to identify beneficiaries, is difficult to update in rural regions due to limited internet connectivity. This is particularly problematic since enrollment into programs like PKH and Program Sembako is contingent on being listed in DTKS.

Without reliable internet access, many local governments struggle to regularly update household data in the DTKS system, leaving many eligible families unregistered. Even mobile applications designed to facilitate registration have limited functionality in remote areas, as poor internet connectivity often prevents their use.

The report recommends enhancing the capacity of sub-district officials by providing portable internet devices or other connectivity tools. This would allow them to carry out registration activities even in areas with limited access. Additionally, implementing offline solutions, such as paper forms or mobile data collection units, could alleviate some of the connectivity challenges.

Improving Benefit Delivery Systems

Once registered, families in remote regions still face obstacles in accessing their benefits. Most social protection programs require beneficiaries to travel long distances to district centers or post offices to receive cash payments. For families in particularly isolated areas, this means spending significant time and money on transportation, only to face long queues once they arrive.

A hybrid approach to benefit delivery is proposed in the report, which includes mobile payment units, more frequent payment schedules, and digital transfers. Where possible, local governments should increase the number of mobile payment services to ensure that beneficiaries do not need to travel great distances. In areas where internet connectivity is available, the expansion of digital payment systems would allow beneficiaries to access their funds with greater ease and flexibility.

A Call for Action

While Indonesia’s social protection programs have successfully reduced poverty in many regions, the country’s remote areas are still being left behind. By improving data collection, tailoring outreach strategies, enhancing registration capacity, and delivering benefits more effectively, Indonesia can ensure that its most vulnerable citizens receive the assistance they need.

The report "Social Protection Inclusion in Indonesia’s Remote Areas - Identifying and Addressing Gaps and Challenges", commissioned by the World Bank, offers clear recommendations to address these challenges. Implementing these changes is crucial to achieving more equitable access to social protection programs across the entire nation.