Macroscale Microcredit and Constraints on Household Business Development: Evidence from Northern Thailand

This study analyzes the Indonesian Village Fund (VF) Program by mapping each VF-related activity to all 17 SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals), and then determines an SDG-based VF allocation in 2018, 2019, and 2020. This study used data from all villages in Indonesia and is the most comprehensive study in Indonesia to address the knowledge gap between VF allocation and SDGs by analyzing the distribution of the use of the VF. The objectives of this paper are: (1) to provide the extent of VF usage to provide evidence on whether this utilization was aligned with the targeted SDGs, and (2) to provide information regarding village activities funded by the VF that were linked to each SDG. The results from this analysis can be used to encourage the Government to socialize and provide an understanding of SDGs to village leaders. Moreover, since Indonesia has developed Village SDGs, which are based on national SDG targets and localization of global SDGs to adapt to local culture as well as social and environmental conditions, it is recommended that other developing countries could formulate similar strategies to help achieve their national SDG targets and to develop rural areas in a more targeted way by prioritizing the most relevant issues. The study shares lessons learned from Indonesian experience in managing fiscal policy to more than 70,000 autonomous villages through the village fund program in the last five years.

Objectives: This study aimed to explore the role of the Village Fund Policy in alleviating poverty in Nagari Lingkuang Aua, Pasaman Barat Regency since poverty in Indonesia represents an urgent issue, particularly in rural areas that tend to exhibit higher poverty rates compared to urban regions. One of the government's policies for poverty eradication is the Village Fund Program. Methods: The study used the qualitative analytical approach to analyze how the Village Fund Program impacts poverty eradication in Nagari Lingkuang Aua. A case study approach was adopted, focusing on the Village Fund Policy. Primary data were compiled through semi-structured and unstructured interviews using purposive sampling techniques. In contrast, this study used existing literature to obtain secondary data from various sources. Results: The study results showed that the Village Fund Program played a significant role in reducing poverty levels in Nagari Lingkuang Aua. However, the effects tend to be short-termed, primarily focusing on fulfilling basic needs for families or individuals, such as food, education, or critical healthcare services. Conclusions: The study highlights the Village Fund Program's impact on reducing poverty in Nagari Lingkuang Aua, but it mainly offers short-term solutions. Sustainable poverty alleviation requires addressing poverty root causes through community-centered initiatives. Emphasizing community participation is indispensable, along with continual evaluation and adjusting fund allocation to align with developmental priorities for rural communities' growth and resilience.

Indonesia is the largest archipelago country with over than 260 million population. Yet, its archipelagic state makes it hard for the Indonesian government to distribute its income equally, causing severe poverty in certain regions. To overcome this problem, the role of construction industry is very crucial. Many papers say construction industry plays an important role to achieve socio-economic development goals in providing shelter, physical infrastructure, employment, and higher economic growth. Knowing the importance of construction sector, especially in physical infrastructure, President of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, focuses on accelerating infrastructure development. To equally distribute the development between rural and urban areas and shorten the level of inequality, in 2015 Indonesian government made a program in a form of fiscal transfers called Village Fund program. The objective of this paper is to measure the impact of Village Fund program in developing physical infrastructure across provinces in Indonesia. This paper used panel data with Random Effect Model to analyze the marginal effect of Village Fund in construction sector. The finished construction value is used as the dependent variable. As the independent variable, this paper uses the amount of Village Fund given and Gross Domestic Regional Product (GRDP) as the control variable in 33 provinces that participated in Village Fund program during 2015 and 2016. Setting with α = 0.01, the result shows that Village Fund program has a marginal positive effect to finished construction value. Every one percentage point change in Village Fund increases the amount of construction value finished by 0.033%. For the other variable, every 1% increase in GRDP also increase the construction value by 0.41%. We hope this paper could be useful to evaluate the implementation of Village Fund and as a base for making similar policies in the future. Keywords: Village Fund, Construction Value, Infrastructure, GRDP, Random Effect Model

This study aimed to find out how community participation in the Village Fund program in Kemang Manis Village in the Four Lawang District in 2016 and the factors that supported and blocked community participation in the village fund program in Kemang Manis Village. The method used was qualitative so that the data obtained through interviews, observation and study of documentation and qualitative descriptive analysis techniques. The results showed that at the decision making stage, the participation of the Kemang Manis village community in the Village Fund Program in 2016 was still low because the data synchronization activities were not carried out, only the village elite community and workers as well as grant providers, were invited, attended, gave opinions, and approve the results of the meeting's decision. At the implementation stage (community participation) was quite good, it appeared in the crowded community who registered themselves as candidates for village infrastructure activities, following the work briefing and direction from the village government. At the time of implementation the community brought their own carpentry equipment, donated food and drinks, and received wages or daily work incentives, and participants of community empowerment activities received transport money. The stages of the utilization of benefits (benefits) the community felt the benefits of the results of village development. Roads could be passed by 4-wheeled vehicles, making it easier to transport agricultural produce, residents began to build houses because roads were available and land values ​​had also increased. The community had not yet been involved in the monitoring, supervision and evaluation stages, because in the planning stages of the Village RPJM and Village RKP documents the community involvement is still low. At the stage of implementation of village development the community was involved as an implementer, but the procurement and financial management and administration activities were carried out by the village government. There were no complaints from the public and information disclosure regarding the new Village Fund in the form of a Village Infrastructure development project board.

This study aims to find out the impact of the 2017 Village Fund policy on infrastructure development and community empowerment in Passo Village, Ambon City. The Village Fund Policy is determined by the government through Government Regulation No. 60 of 2014 concerning Village Funds sourced from the State Budget and Expenditure. This policy is intended to create a strong, advanced, independent and democratic village so that the role and potential of the village must be empowered. This study uses a qualitative approach with descriptive analysis, the authors will approach the object of research by digging information in accordance with the perceptions of the author and the informant and can develop according to the interactions that occur in the interview process. Data collection techniques used are observation, interviews, documentation. The results of this study state that the Village Fund Program Policy (DD) in Baguala District of Ambon City runs quite well, this can be seen from the Village Fund program activities in accordance with the preparation in the form of a list of proposed activity plans, implementation of each activity, evaluation of activities until the formulation of accountability , and the economy of the people in Baguala Subdistrict increased after the Village Fund program. This is due to the increase in infrastructure in the form of agricultural roads, so that access to transportation from the plantation location is easier, thus accelerating the process of selling agricultural products. Based on the conclusions from the results of the research stated above, suggestions can be given which will be expected to be able to improve or improve the implementation of the Village Fund program in Baguala District, Ambon City in the future.

There is distrust and suspicion between the community and the nagari government in managing village funds. The nagari tool argues that the community does not care about managing village funds if the funds do not directly touch the community. While the community does not understand the village fund program and has very little curiosity about the distribution of village funds. According to residents, village funds are only for nagari devices and for the people around them and the development that has been done is considered not to come from village funds. Communication solutions to these problems include providing more understanding to the community of the Nagari government. They should more often disseminate information about village funds and programs that will be implemented to the village community. Those who work as nagari devices should be people with adequate education and ability to deal with problems related to village funds, for example the ability to prepare village fund reports or provide good services and information to the community. The community should care about the village fund program and the development program that will be implemented, participate in the village meetings held.

This study analyzes the implementation of the Saemaul Movement in Indonesia through the Village Fund Program as the spearhead of development and improving community welfare. This study intended to compare the Saemaul Movement Project and Village Fund Program in Indonesia, and analyze how indirect impacts indicate the process of mindset transformation. This study uses a quantitative methodology to measure the effect of Saemaul Movement Project participation on the Village Fund Program participation in Tanjungwangi Village. This study uses the Partial Least Square Structural Equation Model (PLS-SEM). In terms of participation, the positive impact of the Saemaul Movement Project on the Village Fund Program indicates the Movement’s positive effect in Tanjungwangi Village. Based on the findings of the study, we suggest policies to strengthen villagers

The Village Fund Program is a central government program to improve the welfare of rural communities. Each village received a relatively large amount of village funds. However, after their Covid-19, the village funds were diverted to handling the Covid-19 problem. Village funds distributed by the government in general aim to improve the welfare of rural communities due to the unequal welfare conditions between people in rural areas and urban areas. Thus, the village fund program is also expected to eradicate the poor in rural areas. Besides, it is following sustainable development goals (Sustainable Development Goals). /SDGs). The objectives of this research are 1) To analyze the significance of differences in the use of village funds before and after the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic in Klungkung Regency; 2) to analyze the effect of using village funds in 2020 after the Covid-19 pandemic on the welfare level of villagers in Klungkung Regency.
 This research was conducted in Klungkung Regency, especially Klungkung mainland, with the classification of respondents of 3 village officials, 3 village community members, and 1 village community leader. Hence, the respondents in each village are 7 people. The number of villages on Klungkung mainland is 37 villages. Thus, the total number of respondents was 259 people throughout Klungkung Regency. The number of respondents was determined by quota sampling. The sampling technique used was accidental sampling combined with snowball sampling, which was included in the non-probability sampling. For respondents, the village apparatus used probability sampling in each village. In addition, purposive sampling was used for the required informants. Data collection methods were observation, interviews, and in-depth interviews, using descriptive statistical data analysis techniques, regression analysis, and average difference test.
 The results of the analysis showed that: 1) There was a significant difference in the use of village funds in 2019 and 2020 during the pandemic. In 2020, the use of village funds prioritized handling the Covid-19 pandemic. While the use of village funds in 2019 was used for village administration, village development, community development, and community empowerment; 2) There was a significant positive effect on the use of village funds in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic on the welfare level of the population in Klungkung Regency.

One of the efforts to improve the community's welfare and poverty alleviation requires an integrated development program and synergized based on local resources. One of the efforts is the village fund program, are funds provided for villages sourced from the state budget and are used for government administration, implementation of development and empowerment of village communities. This paper examines the spatial diversity of the effectiveness of the Village Fund in reducing poverty in West Sumatra Province from 2015 to 2020 (data from the Ministry of Finance). The unit of research analysis is the regency/municipal that receives the Village Fund assistance. This study uses Geographically Weighted Regression, with dimensions of observing the allocation of Village Funds and poor people. The study results show that the Village Fund cannot reduce poverty in the beneficiary regencies/municipals. The number of Village Funds disbursed increases every year, but the number of poor people also increases; only three districts, namely Limapuluh Kota, Pesisir Selatan, and Kepulauan Mentawai, have decreased in 2020. The Village Fund Program is ineffective in reducing poverty in West Sumatra Province due to the Village Fund allocation percentage being more prominent for village government operations. The allocation of Village Funds for the administration of village government is much larger than what is mandated by law, which is 30%. The main objective of the Village Fund Program is to eradicate poverty and reduce inequality. To achieve this noble goal, it is necessary to evaluate the distribution of Village Funds. This study looks at the effectiveness of the Village Fund in reducing poverty, and looks at the spatial diversity of the effectiveness of the Village Fund in beneficiary regencies/municipals.

Critical Analysis of Village Fund Management Using Maqashid Syariah Approach in Tanjung Saleh Village, Kubu Raya Regency.The birth of Law number 6 of 2014 concerning Villages is a form of the presence of the Indonesian government to its people. The presence of the government to fulfill the needs and basic needs of its people is getting clearer, it can be seen in article 1 paragraph 2 that village funds are funds sourced from the State Revenue and Expenditure Budget for villages that are transferred through the Regency / City Regional Budget and Expenditure and used to finance governance, development implementation, community development, and community empowerment. On the one hand, the village fund program must make observations and evaluations related to the values of the program being carried out. This study analyzes the village fund program using the Maqashid Syariah approach with five basic principles, namely maintaining religion, soul, mind, descent and property. For that research questions focused on; management of village funds in Tanjung Saleh, Kubu Raya Regency with the Maqashid Syariah approach to safeguarding religion (al-Din), soul (al-Nafs), mind (al-'Aql), descent (al-Nasl), property (al-Maal) For that research questions focused on; management of village funds in Tanjung Saleh, Kubu Raya Regency with the Maqashid Syariah approach to safeguarding religion (al-Din), soul (al-Nafs), reason (al-'Aql), descent (al-Nasl), property (al-Maal) with the aim of exploring and understanding the concept of village funds in terms of 5 (five) principles of Maqashid Syariah which are inspired by sharia values. This research was a field research with qualitative descriptive methods and normative juridical. The conclusion of this research is that there has been a harmonization between the values in the Maqashid Syariah in terms of maintaining religion, soul, mind, descent and property in village fund programs in Tanjung Saleh from 2017 to 2019. The work programs of the village of Tanjung Saleh, Sungai Kakap District, Kubu Raya Regency, West Kalimantan, from 2017 to 2019 which are related to maintaining religion was 9%, programs related to keeping the soul was 266%, programs related to maintaining intelligence was 16%, programs related to maintaining descent was 4%, and programs related to safeguarding property was 6%. From this percentage, it shows the harmonization of maqashid with village programs that have been implemented for welfare and services to the community. The interesting thing from the conclusion above is the finding of life-preserving programs that is very dominant compared to other programs so that it can be measured that keeping the soul is very important. Keeping the soul is also a public program that the benefits can be felt by people across ethnicities and religions. It means that inclusive programs without any discrimination.

Small and medium industries including household businesses really need to be developed into businesses that are able to develop independently into businesses to increase community income. Household businesses built by the community must of course take into account the potential that can support business continuity. The study was conducted on household businesses Abon Ikan Tuna "Bunda" in Lumpue Village, West Bacukki District, Parepare City. The purpose of this study is to determine the potential for household business development and formulate development strategies for household businesses. From the results of observations and interviews, it can be concluded that this household business has the potential to be seen from the raw material resources, human resources, equipment resources, the environment, and finance. Quantitative Analysis in this study uses the Process Hierarchy Analysis Method (AHP) so that the results obtained that an alternative sequence in business development in this household business that can be applied is the addition of marketing experts, strategies to increase product diversity development, increase production volume, conduct promotions broadly, adding equipment units, opening opportunities and expanding market networks and adding transportation equipment.

Small and medium industries including household businesses really need to be developed into businesses that are able to develop independently into businesses to increase community income. Household businesses built by the community must of course take into account the potential that can support business continuity. The study was conducted on household businesses Abon Ikan Tuna "Bunda" in Lumpue Village, West Bacukki District, Parepare City. The purpose of this study is to determine the potential for household business development and formulate development strategies for household businesses. From the results of observations and interviews it can be concluded that this household business has the potential to be seen from the raw material resources, human resources, equipment resources, the environment and finance. Quantitative Analysis in this study uses the Process Hierarchy Analysis Method (AHP) so that the results obtained that an alternative sequence in business development in this household business that can be applied is the addition of marketing experts, strategies to increase product diversity development, increase production volume, conduct promotions broadly, adding equipment units, opening opportunities and expanding market networks and adding transportation equipment.

In 2015 the Indonesian Government introduced a program to implement a Social Safety Net the “Village Fund” (Dana Desa) to improve village life and build infrastructure. With the arrival of the Covid19 virus in 2020, the Indonesian Government chose to use this program to distribute funds to the Villages for distribution to individual citizens or implement social programs in the belief that it had been successful in the past and would be a suitable program for the distribution of Covid-19 funds. The purpose of this paper is to review the effectiveness of this original program. This paper will review the available data from 2011 until 2018 with the intention of validating the value of the program and producing a measured outcome. The data on regional economic growth will be assed and compared in two periods, 2011 until 2014 and 2015 until 2018 with the intention identifying the programs contribution to regional development. The influence will be measured using a range of development activities financed from village funds, health infrastructure, education, clean water and housing sanitation. The secondary data source is an unbalanced panel of 514 Indonesian districts, with testing was carried out using a random effect model. The authors found that the village funds that were provided since 2015 drove the regional income growth by 27.7% greater than before the program’s implementation. The independent variable used in the model demonstrated a variation of the dependent variable by 53.3%. This research provides a scientific basis for policies to overcome the effects of Covid-19 through a village fund program. The limitation in this research is that the data in each district was not completely available at the time of publication.

Structural poverty is rural poverty that has a longterm effect on poverty. This poverty occurs due to changes in the economic structure. The failure of the industrial sector to absorb labor from the agricultural sector raises the problem of unemployment and a decrease in wages for agricultural sector workers. Economists’ opinion that poverty will move from rural to urban areas, then when rural poverty decreases, it has an impact decreasing urban poverty. This study focuses on the factors affecting rural poverty, while the purpose of this study is to see the impact of the village fund program on rural poverty using the difference in difference method and to see how village funds program, allocation of village funds, local tax for village, local retribution for village and the numbers of educational facilities in villages are affecting rural poverty. The research data is in the form of a panel consisting of 416 villages in Bogor Regency with a time series of two years. Furthermore, the data is processed using the ordinary least square approach. The results of the analysis show that the village funds program has an ineffective impact in reducing rural poverty, while the allocation of village funds, local taxes for villages, and local fees for villages have a significant effect with a negative relationship.

After four years of implementation of the Village Fund Program, although there were concrete results from the implementation of programs such as the establishment of various basic infrastructures in many villages, the number of cases of misuse of village funds by village heads showed that there were still serious problems in the governance of program implementation and accountability. In many cases, this is due to the ineffective participation of the village community in implementing the program. There is no community participation at all, or even if the community participate, their inability to support the weak village governments in managing village funds properly has resulted in the ineffective implementation of programs and uncontrolled corruption. In this regard, there is a strong correlation of the level of competence and public education with the effectiveness of community participation. A better level of community knowledge will not only increase the level of community participation in the process of policymaking and the implementation of the program but also the quality of the policies made and the results of programs that affect the community. To implement the Village Fund Program effectively and to derive better results through more effective community participation, the Indonesian Government must focus its efforts on increasing community’s capacity to participate in program implementation both through formal and informal education or enhance the role of Non-Governmental Organizations in community empowerment.