Poverty and inequality remain a challenge in developing DIY. In 2021, around 12.76% of the total population in DIY lived below the poverty line. This percentage was higher than the national percentage even though the number of poor people in DIY was smaller than the national average. With a Gini coefficient of 0.436 in the same year, DIY also became the province with the highest level of inequality in Indonesia. Both figures show that there are still some glaring issues regarding the policies to promote public welfare through the achievement of the development targets in the province, notably during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Efforts to combat poverty and inequality in DIY require cohesive efforts and solid collaboration between various stakeholders. 

The SMERU Research Institute (SMERU) and the DIY Provincial Government have collaborated in organizing the Regional Development Forum (FPD), with the objective of promoting efforts to combat poverty and inequality, especially through the development of MSMEs and the strengthening of human resources in DIY.