YOGYAKARTA — Dompet Dhuafa, through its Program Management Partner (MPP) Indonesia Berdaya and supported by UPZDK Permata Bank Syariah, held the grand launch of the Container Canteen Program on Monday (August 15, 2025) at the Islamic University of Indonesia, Yogyakarta. The program was inaugurated by Fathul Wahid as Rector of UII, Anna Rahmawati as Director of Dompet Dhuafa’s Empowerment Program, and Zaih Mubarok as Chairman of the Sharia Supervisory Board of the Sharia Business Unit and Advisor to UPZDK Permata Bank Syariah.
The Container Canteen Program is a Dompet Dhuafa initiative specifically designed for high-achieving students from underprivileged backgrounds, managed through canteens constructed from shipping containers. Through this program, beneficiary students will receive additional income to support their educational expenses.
Anna Rahmawati, Chairwoman of the Indonesian Empowered Entrepreneurship Foundation, explained that this is the 11th canteen launched by Dompet Dhuafa, Indonesia Berdaya, and supported by donors. This program was made possible thanks to joint efforts to foster a generation of entrepreneurs in Indonesia.
“We know that the level of entrepreneurship in Indonesia is very low, around 3.5% of the total workforce. If we refer to a developed country, namely the United States, it can reach 12%. Therefore, in addition to increasing income, we also foster a spirit of entrepreneurship in the beneficiaries, so that they can start their own businesses in the future,” she said.
In its management, the UII Container Canteen collaborates with the UII Student Cooperative. In addition to being the implementer, the UII Student Cooperative also plays a role in monitoring and evaluation, so that the UII Container Canteen runs optimally as expected.
Fathul Wahid, Rector of UII, along with the entire academic community, expressed his happiness with the launch of this program. This is because the Container Canteen serves as a platform for students to learn entrepreneurship outside the classroom.
“We are very grateful to all parties who have supported the implementation of this program. We hope that this will be a blessing for the student beneficiaries in supporting their studies and strengthening the entrepreneurial ecosystem on campus,” said Fathul.
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The 11th Container Canteen was launched by UPZDK Permata Syariah from charitable funds as a realization of its full attention to the future development of sharia human resources. Habibullah, as the head of UPZDK Permata Bank Syariah, said that his party has a high level of trust in Dompet Dhuafa to distribute this charitable program.
“All the programs that we collaborate on with Dompet Dhuafa are running well. This is the third Container Canteen program that we have launched. We hope that this program can inspire students to become entrepreneurs, where we provide them with training, business premises, and working capital. We expect this to become an entrepreneurial laboratory for UII,” he said.
By 2025, Dompet Dhuafa and Indonesia Berdaya have launched 12 Container Canteens in collaboration with campuses across Indonesia. We aim to establish 30 Container Canteens in Indonesia to empower even more beneficiaries. (Dompet Dhuafa)
Text and photos: Harja Pradika
Editor: Ronna, Dhika