As we enter the fourth year of implementing the Village Youth School, the Corruption Eradication Commission continues its commitment in inviting the village youth to be more empowered in villages, especially in the context of Village Funds (Dana Desa) usage.
KPK Director of Education and Public Service, Giri Suprapdiono revealed that this was in line with a study conducted by KPK on village funds, which found that there is a need for public involvement including the youth in overseeing village funds.
"Village youths need to actively participate in the utilization of village funds and have a voice in the management of the funds together with village officials," he said when opening the Village Youth School event last week.
Giri said that the Village Youth School Program had previously been held in the Special Region of Yogyakarta, specifically in 2017 and 2018. "This year, the Village Youth School is held in the Central Java Province. However, given the large area of the region, the Village Youth School for the Central Java region is divided into two stages," he explained.
The first stage, continued Giri, was carried out in 2019 and included 16 districts in Central Java, namely Blora, Boyolali, Demak, Grobogan, Jepara, Karanganyar, Klaten, Kudus, Magelang, Pati, Rembang, Semarang, Sragen, Sukoharjo, Temanggung, and Wonogiri.
The second stage is held in 2020 with a locus consisting of 13 districts, namely Banjarnegara, Banyumas, Batang, Brebes, Cilacap, Kebumen, Kendal, Pekalongan, Pemalang, Purbalingga, Purworejo, Tegal, and Wonosobo.
This activity is the result of the collaboration between KPK and the Ministry of Village, Development of Disadvantaged Regions and Transmigration as well as Ketjilbergerak. If KPK emphasizes transparency, the Ministry of Village, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration focuses on the substance regarding regulation, participation, and monitoring of implementation. "Together we focus on public participation to oversee the implementation of the Village Funds," said Giri.
A total of 60 youths from 20 villages in the western part of Central Java will participate in training activities for 3 (three) days which will involve an in-depth study of the materials and actions for 60 village youths who were selected through their proposals which were submitted previously.
The Village Youth School program begins with capacity building activities for the youth on the topic of the village and discusses how the village finances are managed. Furthermore, the youth in the program will create programs and actions independently for their respective villages, particularly regarding the utilization and management of village finances.
The opening of the Village Youth School can be accessed through the following YouTube page:
