Autonomy Watch: PKH aims to bring down mortality rate

Funds have been channeled to impoverished families in West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) through the Family Hopeful Program (PKH), as part of a government effort to curb maternal and infant mortality rates.

The province listed 13,000 families categorized as impoverished, each receiving Rp 2.5 million (about US$250) from the government through the Social Affairs Ministry.

The ministry had set aside around Rp 18 billion annually since 2008 for the program, NTB social, civil registry and population office chief Bachruddin said during a recent media briefing.

“The targeted areas are located in Dompu and Bima regencies on Sumbawa Island. We have distributed the assistance to around 13,000 families this year,” Bachruddin said.

Registered families can withdraw their money from post offices by producing social insurance cards issued by the ministry.

“The targeted families can only withdraw the funds if they produce proof, such as a pregnancy examination report from the community health center, or a copy of their children’s school attendance card,” he said.

Bachruddin said the PKH program has been very effective in alleviating maternal and infant mortality rates in NTB, especially for very poor families. All of the 970 pregnant mothers targeted by the PKH program delivered their babies safely this year, he said.

The PKH program also contributed significantly to education by raising school participation levels. The average 2010 school attendance level reached over 90 percent for the 4,500 elementary and junior high school children from the targeted families.

Program recipients also benefit significantly from continuous counseling and supervision of assistance, Bachruddin added.

Like other underprivileged families, some program recipients are not yet covered by the Jamkesmas health insurance and Needy Students’ Assistance (BSM) plan, sponsored by the provincial administration, because they generally live in areas with poor access to healthcare and education facilities.

Based on data from the NTB Central Statistics Agency, as of 2009, more than 150,000 families in NTB are categorized as living in abject poverty. However, so far the PKH program has only been able to cover 13,000 families.

In practice, the program provides benefits beyond the 13,000 families as assistance can be delegated to another family when a targeted family has given birth and completed the postnatal period, Bachruddin said.

The NTB social affairs office is currently proposing additional funds for the PKH program for another 10,000 targeted families in East Lombok regency in 2011.

“We have proposed East Lombok to be included next year, because it is densely populated and it’s poverty rate is the highest in NTB,” Bachruddin said.