The Financial Services Authority ( OJK ) collaborates with the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research and Technology (Kemendikbud Ritek), the Ministry of Religion (Kemenag), and the banking industry to continue to encourage programs to increase literacy and financial inclusion for student groups through the One Account One Student program. (CHASE).
Based on an OJK press release quoted from Portalpekalongan.com from the Ojk.go.id page, in August 2021 the KEJAR program was packaged in a series of activities “KEJAR Prestos Anak Indonesia” or abbreviated as “KREASI” whose peak event was held virtually on Tuesday, August 24, 2021.
The “KREASI” activity was attended virtually by 1,000 students from several schools located in several areas.
To note, the KEJAR program is to encourage children to save from an early age through a savings account called SIMPLE. SIMPLE is an abbreviation of Student Savings, which is a children’s savings account created specifically for students.
SIMPLE Savings is issued nationally by banks in Indonesia, with easy and simple requirements and attractive features.
As a special savings product for students, SIMPLE savings customers can range from early childhood (PAUD) to high school and equivalent schools.
Tirta Segara, a member of the OJK Board of Commissioners for Consumer Education and Protection, in his remarks said that providing financial access for the community, including for students, is the responsibility of all parties because financial inclusion is an important part of efforts to restore the economy and equalize income.
“The theme of expanding financial access for students, coupled with financial literacy and consumer protection, is very strategic. This is in line with the government’s efforts to achieve a financial inclusion rate of 90% by 2024,” said Tirta.
Director-General of Islamic Education at the Ministry of Religion Muhammad Ali Ramdhani said that increasing financial literacy and inclusion is very much needed considering the large number of students and a very wide area coverage.
“Through the KEJAR program, we hope that the strength of financial literacy in every individual learner becomes stronger and has direct experience in financial management that is connected to financial service institutions,” said Muhammad Ali Ramdhani.
The Director-General of Early Childhood Education, Basic Education and Secondary Education of the Ministry of Education and Culture Ristek Jumeri added that the current Indonesian education system is also directed at increasing financial literacy, which includes the understanding of economic transactions, introduction to the concept of spending as meeting basic needs, introduction to the concept of sharing, introduction to the concept of saving; both traditional and modern, for example through saving and investing.
“We welcome the OJK initiative in the KEJAR program, which is a form of the Indonesia Savings Action to foster a culture of saving from an early age and the realization of account ownership for all students in Indonesia. The Ministry of Education and Culture and Research and Technology hopes that this program can be realized in the digitization of student savings for easier and more efficient use of savings optimally,” said Jumeira.
The “KREASI” activity which took place in August 2021 throughout Indonesia with the theme “One Student’s Account, Realize the Dreams of Indonesian Children” was carried out in various forms of account opening, financial education, and socialization of the KEJAR program as many as 504 activities, webinars and competitions for students.
The KEJAR program is a form of implementation of Presidential Decree (Keppres) No. 26 of 2019 concerning the Indonesian Savings Day, which has the aim that every student in Indonesia has an account so that the culture of saving at formal Financial Services Institutions (LJK) can be carried out from an early age.
According to Tirta, the saving movement for students is very crucial considering the large number, which is around 65 million students, or 25% of the total population, and belongs to the category of critical economic players (very strategic economic actors) who need to be equipped with adequate financial understanding.
In addition, the 2019 OJK survey shows that students generally have relatively low levels of financial literacy and inclusion. The financial literacy rate of the population aged 15-17 years is only 16%, or far below the national financial literacy rate of 38%. In line with the literacy level, the level of financial inclusion of the population aged 15-17 years is also relatively low, namely 58%, or far below the national financial inclusion level of 76%.
Students are also more vulnerable to a financial perspective because they do not understand the importance of saving or investing, including setting up an emergency fund, and are easily influenced by influencer offers on social media.
The government has also launched the Indonesia Savings Action program through the National Council for Inclusive Finance as a strategic step that provides great benefits and encourages people to save informal financial service institutions.
In 2021, it is targeted that 70% of students in Indonesia have a savings account, and data up to the second quarter of 2021, it is recorded that 40.8 million (63.14%) students in Indonesia already have a savings account with a total nominal of RP. 26.30 trillion.