The North Jakarta Empowerment, Child Protection, and Population Control (PPAPP) Sub-agency is encouraging greater use of the SIDAYA (Empowered Older Adults) app to improve seniors' quality of life. The effort is being supported through information sessions on Elderly Family Development (BKL), Schools for Older Adults, and Prosperous Family Service Centers (PPKS).

The session, themed "Optimizing SIDAYA to Help Older Adults Stay Resilient, Independent, Healthy, and Empowered", was held at the North Jakarta PPAPP Sub-agency office on Jalan Danau Sunter Utara, Sunter Agung Urban Village, Tanjung Priok Sub-district. It brought together 40 participants representing six sub-districts in North Jakarta.

North Jakarta PPAPP Sub-agency Head Agung Meidya Gutama said improving seniors' quality of life requires collaboration between the government, families, and community cadres. SIDAYA is one of the tools supporting these efforts.

"SIDAYA is a public service tool that helps identify older adults' needs and supports them in staying healthy, safe, independent, and active," he said on Friday (10/9).

Agung highlighted that cadres play a key role in using the app because they work directly with residents. Accurate and thorough data on seniors' health and social conditions is essential to ensure government support reaches those who need it.

"The key to the app's success lies in the accuracy of the data entered by cadres in the field," he asserted.

The event featured two speakers: Dr. Elsa Pongtuluran from the Directorate of Family Resilience for Older Adults and Vulnerable Groups at the National Population and Family Planning Agency (BKKBN), and Tri Suratmi, a lecturer in the Master's Program in Public Health at Respati Indonesia University (Urindo).

Agung stressed that SIDAYA should be used for more than just data collection. The information gathered through the app should guide follow-up action to identify and address seniors' needs, particularly those requiring assistance or healthcare services.

"In line with SIDAYA's motto, 'You Only Live Once, Don't Grow Old Without Purpose,' let us work together to ensure that older adults in North Jakarta lead meaningful lives," he said.

Ati Rohayati, a BKL cadre from Pademangan Barat Urban Village, welcomed the initiative.

"The materials helped cadres understand how to collect data digitally, particularly when recording seniors' health histories and social conditions," she said.

She explained that data had previously been collected manually, which could lead to missing information and irregular reporting. With the training, cadres are expected to use SIDAYA to collect data more efficiently.

"This training was very practical. We now have a better understanding of how to enter seniors' health histories and social conditions into SIDAYA. Hopefully, we can identify more quickly which seniors need referrals or special attention," she said.