Jakarta, July 13, 2026 – The Europe Today: Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto has said the concept of the Red and White Village Cooperatives has been a long-held vision inspired by his experiences serving as a military officer in rural Indonesia, where he witnessed firsthand the economic hardships faced by village communities.
Speaking at the main celebration of the 79th National Cooperative Day in Jakarta on Sunday, President Prabowo said the idea had been on his mind for decades as a means of strengthening the grassroots economy through cooperative development.
“The concept of the Red and White Cooperative has been on my mind for a long time—for decades, in fact,” the president said.
Prabowo recalled that during his military deployments to rural areas, he encountered widespread poverty and, in some cases, hunger among local communities. Those experiences, he said, convinced him that Indonesia’s long-term development must begin with empowering its villages.
He stressed that while Indonesia continues its transition into an industrial nation, the government must ensure rural communities are protected and provided with greater economic opportunities.
The president described cooperatives as one of the most effective instruments for strengthening village economies but acknowledged that previous efforts had advanced slowly due to limited authority and insufficient access to capital.
Since taking office, Prabowo said his administration has prioritised strengthening the agricultural sector by accelerating food self-sufficiency programmes, reducing fertiliser prices, and increasing government grain purchase prices to improve farmers’ incomes.
Despite these initiatives, he noted that many farmers continue to face financial hardship, with some forced to rely on high-interest loans from informal moneylenders to finance planting activities.
As part of the government’s initial measures, Prabowo said millions of farmers deemed unable to repay their debts had received debt relief. He added that the administration had also launched the establishment of Red and White Village Cooperatives as savings and loan institutions in every village and sub-district to provide affordable financing for local communities.
According to the president, the government aims to establish 81,000 village cooperatives, matching the total number of villages and sub-districts across Indonesia.
He said the nationwide cooperative initiative is intended to reduce dependence on predatory high-interest lending while laying a stronger foundation for sustainable grassroots economic development throughout the country.
