SURABAYA (13 January 2024) – The Ministry of Social Affairs held a Pahlawan Ekonomi Nusantara (PENA) workshop at Kaza Mall Surabaya, Saturday (13/1). Various trainings can be followed by participants, from handicraft training to making cromboloni, a snack that is currently viral.

The PENA workshop was held in the context of training, strengthening, and empowering PENA beneficiary families (KPM) graduation and training to strengthen the capacity of PENA social assistants. Many classes can be attended by participants, such as culinary, handicrafts, digital marketing, financial literacy, videography, simple research, and branding and packaging.

One of the participants, Erlinda Khanum (29), said this activity must be carried out frequently to encourage PENA beneficiaries. This woman from Sidoarjo Regency is a recipient of the Family Hope Program (PKH) and basic food assistance. She is successfully graduated in August 2023. Erlinda is now self-sufficient.

"The training materials include packaging design so that it becomes better and more attractive to buyers. The price can also be higher," said Erlinda.

This mother of two is a persistent person. She sells herbal medicine and a grocery store at home to fulfill the needs of herself and her family. Erlinda dared to leave PKH assistance because she felt that she could be independent without social assistance. In a month, she can earn Rp2 million from her business. However, Elinda is not complacent. She is motivated to expand her business.

Erlinda's herbal products are usually only sold to her neighbours, relatives, and the surrounding environment. At the PENA workshop, Erlinda consulted with Tatarupa Nusantara about branding and packaging her products. "The suggestion from Tatarupa's designer was to change the packaging so it looks like a coffee café. It will be more attractive," she said.

Since joining PENA, Erlinda admits that she often participates in exhibitions in various places. The herbs she sells have quite a large demand. "At exhibitions, we sell a lot, up to Rp600,000," she said.

The workshop was attended by PENA Beneficiary Families and social pillars from Surabaya and Sidoarjo, with details of 132 KPM, 111 Family Hope Program (PKH) HR, and 49 District Social Welfare Workers (TKSK).