MoSA Initiates Affordable Housing, Only IDR 10,000/Month

JAKARTA (21 January 2024) – This is not a hoax. In reality, that is how things are. A Ministry of Social Affairs (MoSA) flat in Jakarta can be rented for IDR 10,000 per month. The facilities are quite extensive, ranging from bunk beds, dining tables, kitchens with gas stoves and its equipment, as well as restrooms with sitting toilets.

MoSA flats are located at the Mulya Jaya Bambu Apus Center, Cipayung District, East Jakarta, and the Pangudi Luhur Integrated Center in Bekasi. Each room, measuring around 24 m², is suitable for a modest family.

Constructed through collaboration between MoSA and the Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR), these rental flats, inaugurated in 2023, are designed specifically for underprivileged communities and vulnerable groups.

Confirming the affordability, Adrianus Alla, Head of the Mulya Jaya Center on Saturday (20/1) stated, "It's true that they are charged a rental fee of IDR 10,000 per month, which will be returned to them. A kind of social fund."

The MoSA flats go beyond just living spaces; they include prayer rooms, parking lots, children's reading corners, multipurpose rooms, lockers, CCTV security systems, access to garbage disposal, safety nets, facilities for disabled individuals, and public amenities like toilets and a waiting room on each floor, along with evacuation routes.

Tito Suwignyo (62), a Mulya Jaya Flats inhabitant, stated that he had lived there for ten months. Previously, he was homeless. "Thank God, the Minister of Social Affairs has finally paid attention to us. I was homeless for 17 years. I am grateful and would like to thank the Minister, Risma. Furthermore, rent is merely IDR 10,000 per month. That is all in. We don't have to bring anything," said Tito. 

Tito is a beneficiary who met with MoSA’s team while scavenging in the Kalibata area. Tito has been a scavenger for 17 years. Now Tito is trying his luck by selling vegetable rice cakes and soto in the Mampang area, South Jakarta.

Apart from providing decent housing, MoSA empowers beneficiaries to improve their lives, especially those who had jobs but struggled to meet their daily needs.

Elmi Wati, a Middle Social Counselor who is also the flat manager, stated that the 71 occupied rooms consist of persons with disabilities, the elderly, and vulnerable groups with a total of 205 people.

Meanwhile, at the Pangudi Luhur Flats, there are 95 rooms available with very adequate security. "Priority is given to persons with disabilities, particularly on the ground floor," stated Syafrudin, Social Counselor at the Ministry of Social Affairs.

Pangudi Luhur Flats not only offers housing but also supports residents in starting their businesses. Residents are educated on business management, and profits are saved to pay down the house in installments, allowing the flat inhabitants to become self-sufficient and purchase their own homes one day.