<![CDATA[This policy paper outlines that the Islamic Boarding School Business Incubation Assistance Program launched by the Ministry of Religious Affairs faces a significant challenge in the form of weak economic independence of post-aid Islamic boarding schools, particularly in Bengkulu Province, due to the disruption of monitoring and follow-up assistance functions. This policy study aims to analyze the factors causing the failure of the post-aid assistance function and formulate alternative policy solutions for decision-makers at the Ministry of Religious Affairs. Using a qualitative descriptive-evaluative approach based on William N. Dunn's framework and documentation study techniques, this study screens issues through the Urgency, Seriousness, and Growth (USG) method and weights alternative drafts using Dunn's evaluation criteria. The results of the discussion indicate that this program is trapped in structural inertia and a risk-averse bureaucratic culture, where formal-administrative accountability dominates over the substantial performance of the real Islamic boarding school business. This study concludes that the central Ministry of Religious Affairs has failed to carry out its sustainable mentoring function due to limited institutional capacity and a deficit in economic literacy among its mentoring staff. As a primary recommendation, the Minister of Religious Affairs is advised to issue a Ministerial Instruction (IMA) requiring all Heads of Provincial Ministry of Religious Affairs Offices to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) or Cooperation Agreement (PKS) for a strategic cross-sectoral partnership with the Ministry of Cooperatives and SMEs and the Higher Education Business Incubator Center.]]>
