SMERU Indonesia

SMERU n Monitoring the Social Crisis in Indonesia n No. 11 / November 2000

It has become customary for SMERU to present the results of its most recent field studies at public seminars and workshops after completing its investigations. The primary purpose of such occasions is to provide policy makers and other interested parties at the earliest opportunity with a preliminary report of our findings and to invite comment and discussion on the substance of the findings and the relevant policy implications.

SMERU's most recent seminar on 15 September presented the results of our rapid survey of rural credit issues during the economic crisis. About 50 participants from various organizations and agencies with an interest in credit issues attended, including representatives from Bank Indonesia, Bank Rakyat Indonesia, the Department of Agriculture and Forestry, the Ministry of Cooperatives and Small and Medium Scale Enterprises, the Ministry of Women's Empowerment; the National Planning Board, the Social Safety Net Coordination Team (TKPP-JPS), the secretariat of several government programs involved in credit schemes, the Indonesia Movement for Micro-finance Development (Gema-PKM), national and international NGOs, research institutes, and donor agencies.

SMERU was also invited to present its findings in a discussion held by the Indonesian Movement for Micro-Finance Development on 20th September 2000, and at a workshop on "An Alternative Agency for Agricultural Micro-Finance" held by the Department of Agriculture and Forestry when this department launched a new credit program for Food Security (KKP) to replace the KUT credit scheme.n

Telah menjadi kebiasaan SMERU untuk menyampaikan hasil kajiannya yang terakhir dalam seminar atau lokakarya tak lama setelah Tim SMERU selesai melakukan penyelidikan di lapangan. Tujuan utama acara tersebut adalah untuk secepatnya menyampaikan laporan awal mengenai temuan Tim kepada pengambil kebijakan dan pihak lain yang berkepentingan, serta mengundang peserta agar memberi tanggapan dan melakukan diskusi mengenai isi temuan dan implikasi kebijakan yang relevan.

Seminar SMERU yang terakhir diadakan pada tanggal 15 September, yaitu mengenai survey cepat masalah kredit perdesaan di masa krisis. Sekitar 50 peserta dari berbagai pihak yang terlibat dalam permasalahan perkreditan menghadiri seminar ini, antara lain dari Bank Indonesia, Bank Rakyat Indonesia, Departemen Pertanian dan Kehutanan, Kantor Meneg Koperasi dan PKM, Kantor Meneg Pemberdayaan Perempuan, Bappenas, TKPP-JPS, Sekretariat sejumlah program pemerintah yang berkaitan dengan skema kredit, Gerakan Bersama Pengembangan Kredit Mikro (Gema PKM), LSM nasional dan internasional, lembaga penelitian, dan lembaga donor.

SMERU juga diundang sebagai nara sumber pada diskusi rutin Gema PKM pada tanggal 20 September pada Workshop "Lembaga Alternatif Keuangan Mikro Pertanian" ketika Departemen Pertanian dan Kehutanan meluncurkan program kredit KKP (Kredit Ketahanan Pangan) sebagai pengganti KUT. n Sri Kusumastuti Rahayu