PAPUA – The celebration of National Children’s Day 2024, which took place in Papua Province, became more lively with the acceleration of the distribution of Indonesia Pintar Program assistance aimed at 1,000 students at the elementary and junior high school levels in the Papua region and the delivery of the Indonesia Pintar Program to 1,000 representatives of the Papua Province Indonesia Pintar Program recipients witnessed by the President of the Republic of Indonesia, Joko Widodo.
The Secretary General of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology, who was present in person, said that this effort was proof of the State’s partisanship in ensuring equitable education assistance for all Indonesian children. “Papua, which we know is in the easternmost region of Indonesia and suffers from various geographical, demographic and socio-economic challenges in running the wheels of education, we must pay attention to ensure the continuity of learning for students in schools,” said the Secretary General of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology.
Commemorating the 40th National Children’s Day, Secretary General Suharti hopes that all elements of education can work together to support learning that is inclusive, equitable, and in accordance with the needs of students, one of the student representatives who received the Indonesia Pintar Program symbolically was a 4th grade student of Negri Inpres Ardipura III Elementary School, Israel Noah Plasom Dwemanser, and he was happy because he was chosen to be one of the recipients of the Indonesia Pintar Program and especially his father was only a casual laborer and his mother was a housewife, “my parents are happy and I want to buy school equipment,” he said.
Grade 8 student, Sekolah Menengah Pertama Negri 6 Sentani, Beti Cicilia Tokoro, is also grateful for the opportunity to get the Indonesia Pintar Program. Beti, who is the 8th child of 9 siblings, feels that the Smart Indonesia Program can ease the burden on the family economy, “among us as a family, only three children go to school so when I got the news that I got the Smart Indonesia Program and I felt grateful, I would buy school equipment,” she said.
Beti, who someday aspires to be a soldier, feels more eager to learn after receiving educational assistance from the Government in the form of the Indonesia Pintar Program, “I am more eager to make my parents proud,” Beti said.
Israel and Beti are two of the four students selected to receive the Indonesia Pintar Program symbolically given by the Secretary General of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology. The other two are junior high school students named Janet Mozza Sabarofek from Jayapura 9 Junior High School and William Abednego Lambe from Kalam Kudus Christian Junior High School.
Vice Principal of State Junior High School 2 Kota Jayapura, Polin, was pleased that her student became one of the recipients of the Indonesia Pintar Program and she is Shania Levine, a grade 8 student and this is not the first time for Shania to get the Indonesia Pintar Program previously Shania was also a recipient of the Indonesia Pintar Program when she was in elementary school, “I am grateful to receive the Indonesia Pintar Program again because it can relieve parents in providing books, school equipment, and my uniform,” she said.
Polin admitted that there were no obstacles in the disbursement process because communication between schools and parents went well, “we convey the files that must be prepared by parents, namely the Family Card and Identity Card of the parents, while the school provides a letter of introduction,” said Polin.
Polin hopes that the Indonesia Pintar Program can continue and more underprivileged students will benefit and that way, more students will be motivated to continue their education and especially with the Bank Rakyat Indonesia Car said Polin where parents feel even easier to activate the Indonesia Pintar Card and disburse funds, “we are happy to work with the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology to ensure the acceleration of the disbursement of Indonesia Pintar Program funds is going well,” said Ade Ivanni, Supervisor of Bank Rakyat Indonesia RO Jayapura.