To reduce the impact of the increased price of fuel on the poor and vulnerable, the Government of Indonesia introduced the Direct Cash Transfer Program (SLT) via Presidential Instruction (Inpres) No. 12 of 2005 on the Implementation of Cash Transfer Assistance for Poor Households. In the same manner as previous funding assistance programs, several problems emerged in the implementation of the SLT program in the field. At the same time, a variety of public opinion appeared concerning the effectiveness of programs of this nature and the impact that they have.

With the aim of conducting an early evaluation and improving the second disbursement, The SMERU Research Institute conducted two rapid appraisals of the implementation of the SLT Program, namely in DKI Jakarta and five kabupaten/kota (Cianjur, Demak, Tapanuli Tengah, Bima and Ternate). The results of these rapid appraisals can be perused in the column “Focus On” as well as “And The Data Says.”

In addition, to enrich readers’ understanding of the program’s implementation, other dimensions of the research findings are presented in the “From the Field” column, namely those concerning the SLT disbursement service of the post office branches, local initiatives in the implementation of the SLT, and the profile of SLT recipients and non-recipients.

As discussed in the “Opinion” column, cash transfer programs have been initiated in several countries. Among the successful ones is Mexico where it is known as the Progresa Program. The steps taken by the Government of Mexico and the program’s design that is sensitive to gender disparity in accessing resources can serve as a learning process for the design and implementation of programs of this type in Indonesia.

A note from Mimin Rukmini dan Sad Dian Utomo of PATTIRO on the weaknesses and effect of the SLT Program completes this edition of the newsletter