Representing the Governor of Central Kalimantan Agustiar Sabran, Assistant for General Administration Sunarti accompanied the Minister of Social Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia Saifullah Yusuf review the People’s School Program while also conducting a dissemination of DTSEN at the Salawah Building, Katingan Regency Government Office Complex, Saturday (23/5/2026).

KASONGAN, KATINGAN – ADPIM BUREAU. Representing the Governor of Central Kalimantan Agustiar Sabran, Assistant for General Administration Sunarti accompanied the Minister of Social Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, Saifullah Yusuf, and his delegation on a working visit to Central Kalimantan, specifically to Katingan Regency, for the event entitled “Collaboration of the President’s Priority Programs in Developing Human Resources Towards Economic Independence in Katingan Regency,” held at the Salawah Building, Katingan Regency Government Office Complex, Saturday (23/5/2026).

The Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf during this visit aimed to review the Sekolah Rakyat (People’s School) Program while also conducting a dissemination of National Single Social and Economic Data (DTSEN) to officials of the Katingan Regency Government. In his first visit to Katingan Regency, Minister Saifullah was welcomed through a traditional customary ceremony called Potong Pantan (gate-cutting procession using a traditional weapon named Mandau) as a form of the people’s respect and acceptance towards the guests. The series of events then continued with a traditional dance show, Arabic and English speech, choir performance, as well as a classroom learning simulation conducted by students of Sekolah Rakyat.

Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah stated that Sekolah Rakyat is a program aimed at children from the lowest economic group (Decile 1) who have limited access to education. He also expressed appreciation for the commitment of the Central Kalimantan Provincial Government and the Katingan Regency Government in supporting the implementation of Sekolah Rakyat.

“We appreciate the support for the implementation of Sekolah Rakyat. We are currently preparing for the opening of the second phase of Sekolah Rakyat with a capacity of 300 students, consisting of 100 elementary school students, 100 junior high school students, and 100 senior high school students. There is no registration process for this program. Instead, outreach is conducted to children from the most underprivileged families so they can gain access to proper education,” he said.

Furthermore, Minister Saifullah conducted a dissemination of DTSEN for all regional government elements present. He emphasized that the initiative reflects the central government’s commitment to providing accurate, integrated data that can serve as the basis for implementing various social programs. DTSEN also serves as the sole socioeconomic database and is managed by Statistics Indonesia. The dissemination aimed to strengthen regional governments’ understanding of the utilization of DTSEN in supporting development planning and the more targeted distribution of social assistance.

On the same occasion, Katingan Regent Saiful expressed appreciation for the implementation of the Sekolah Rakyat Program and DTSEN in Katingan Regency. According to him, the program represents a strategic step toward improving the quality of human resources while ensuring that various social assistance programs can be distributed more accurately and effectively. (els/ben)