Jakarta (ANTARA) – Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) Bahlil Lahadalia reaffirmed his commitment to expanding electricity access across Indonesia through a program supporting new household electricity connections.”Providing access to electricity is also a manifestation of the state's presence for communities that lack access to it,” he remarked in a statement on Saturday.Lahadalia noted that expanding electricity access to underserved communities can significantly improve quality of life by supporting daily activities, creating new economic opportunities for families, and broadening access to education and information.”I was born in a village without electricity. So, everyone must have access to electricity. How can people quickly access information? How can elementary school children do well in school without access to digitalization? So, I think this is one of the basic infrastructures that must be pursued,” he emphasized.He stressed that the state has a responsibility to ensure access to electricity, particularly in regions where limited customer numbers and high infrastructure costs make network development commercially unviable.On Friday (June 19), the minister attended the inaugural lighting ceremony for the installation of new electricity connections in Krembeng Hamlet, Hadimulyo Village, Kaligesing Sub-district, Purworejo District, Central Java.In addition to symbolically turning on the switch, he also presented electricity tokens to one of the aid recipients.The Village Electrification (Lisdes) and New Electricity Installation Assistance (BPBL) programs are systematic and planned efforts implemented by the government in collaboration with the state-owned electricity company, PT PLN, to bring electricity to underserved areas.The primary target is communities living in remote, isolated areas, or locations not yet connected to the PLN electricity grid.By 2025, the Lisdes Program aims to reach 1,403 locations across Indonesia, from Aceh to South Papua.Meanwhile, assistance for installing new electricity connections for underprivileged communities has been realized for 220,845 households, with 19,161 of these households being in Central Java Province.