International Newsletter on
Sustainable Local Development
Newsletter #95
1st February
2013
Summary
Eradicating Poverty in Indonesia: A convention to introduce a
University-pivoted synergistic approach
Katosi Women’s Development Trust in Uganda: When women take a hand in
their own development
Message from
the editorial team
In
this, our first Newsletter of 2013, we would like to thank all our readers,
some of whom have been faithfully reading this publication since we first began
in November 2003.
We
are very happy to inform you that the Newsletter is now published in six
languages. Thanks to a meeting that took place last October in Indonesia, the
AKSI UI foundation has offered to translate it into Bahasa Indonesia. This new
version is in addition to the Japanese one that has been published since 2010
by the Syakai Undo (Social Movement),
published by the Civil Policy Research Institute (CPRI) of the Seikatsu Club,
who publish to a readership of 1,200/ AKSI UI send the newsletters out to about
2,000 readers in Indonesia. We send our Newsletter to about 325 people, some of
whom redistribute it within their organisation, such as the ALOE list that has
125 subscribers.
This
means that our Newsletter is sent to several thousand readers. Our thanks to
all the people and organisations who provide this voluntary support for our
publication.
This
issue continues with articles on our main theme, that of local
initiatives. Both Judith’s article and
that written by our Indonesian friends concern the struggle against poverty and
building sustainable local development in their respective environments.
Judith Hitchman
Yvon Poirier
Martine Theveniaut
Eradicating Poverty in Indonesia: A convention to introduce a
University-pivoted synergistic approach
By Alina Darmadi
Yayasan Aksi Sinergi Untuk Indonesia (AKSI UI Foundation) is an organization that dedicates
its work to fighting poverty, growing society’s independence and increasing
living condition in a sustainable manner. The organization was founded as the
follow-up to a seminar themed "Indonesia Without Poverty” held by
the Faculty of Economy, University of Indonesia, or what people refer to
as the education cradle of the most prominent national figures. The seminar was
conducted in 2011 to commemorate the faculty’s 60th anniversary, thus the
foundation was initiated and supported by some of the prominent national
figures rooted in the faculty, as well as other leading individuals in people’s
empowerment and social entrepreneurship such as Prof. Dr. Subroto, and Drs.
Bambang Ismawan of Bina Swadaya, the Social Entrepreneurship Father of Indonesia.
Keynote
speaker’s lineup on opening night.
Dr.
Dorojatun Kuntjoro Djakti, a former Coordinating minister of economy and former
Indonesan ambassador to the United States of America, Nur Mahmudi Isma'il, the mayor of Depok city
where the convention was held, Prof. Dr. Subroto, AKSI UI founder, Prof.
Firmanzah Ph.D, Aksi UI founder and Special Staff to the President on Economics
and Development, Drs. Bambang Ismawan MA, Aksi UI founder and Social
Entrepreneurship father in Indonesia, and HS Dillon, Special Envoy of President
of Republic Indonesia on Poverty Alleviation
Learning from its mentors in its efforts to eradicate poverty, AKSI UI
believes that the key ingredient to building sustainable impacts is by
developing synergy between the existing strengths in the community. Poverty,
one of the biggest challenges in Indonesia, is multidimensional, so AKSI UI
recognizes that it takes a comprehensive and sustainable multi-sectoral effort
to solve through the synergy between community strengths.. This is why AKSI UI does
not work alone.. It encourages collaboration and participation from as many
functions and elements within society as possible in the fight to eliminate
poverty from Indonesia. In other words, it works as a glucohesive force,
bringing all the actors and strengths in society together to build sustainable
solutions.
Such efforts have been conducted with success among others in Klaten in Central
Java, West Nusa Tenggara and in TaposTenjo, a suburb of Jakarta. However, given
its very young age, AKSI UI does not have the capacity to work all
over the five million km² area of
Indonesia. What now needs to be done is to identify an element in society that
can replicate the cohesive role played by AKSI UI , and disseminate the
concept. This structure needs to have a strategic position in the society, to
be trusted, and to have the complete resources and the
capacity to build cohesion between the many elements in society.
Meanwhile, looking back at history, we know that in
Indonesia it has always been educational institutions that have inspired and led
meaningful movements in Indonesia. It is therefore clear theat universities
should and can play a pivotal role in leading the fight to combat poverty in their
respective areas.
Consequently, to commemorate its first anniversary, AKSI UI held a 3-day
National Convention on Poverty Eradication, inviting universities from
throughout Indonesia, as well as organisations, NGOs and individuals concerned
with the issue of poverty. The convention was held on 3rd –5th December at the
University of Indonesia in Depok, and was themed “Universities and their
Strategic Role in Enhancing Sustainable Community Empowerment.”
Academics responded positively to the event. “Many regions have had a
poverty problem for a long time, be it in coastal or farming areas”, said Prof.
Dr. Hj Badia Perizade, the rector of the University of Sriwijaya, Palembang which is
located in the farming area. Badia, the only female rector among state
universities added, “We need to support each other to create a breakthrough in
solving poverty problems”.
Weeks before this initiative was held, additional support was also
obtained from the Directorate General of Higher Education, the Ministry of Education and
Culture. This strengthens AKSI UI’s access to the many universities in
Indonesia. Furthermore, AKSI UI also obtained support in
promoting the event from many university groups and associations such as the
association of private universities (APTISI), and the association of Catholic
universities (APTIK). They were also supported by the association of
Nahdlatul Ulama universities (APTINU), and Muhammadyah assembly of higher
Education; these are the biggest Muslim organizations, thus representing the
majority of the Indonesian population. All in all, the convention has succeeded in
gathering representatives from 93 universities from 86 cities throughout
Indonesia from the most Western part of Aceh to the most Eastern part of Papua.
“This event is owned by
Indonesian’s universities to once more answer the call of history that has
proven them as one of the main pillars in determining the direction of the
Country,” said Bambang Ismawan, the founder and the Chairman of the Board of Executives AKSI
UI, also the chairman of Bina Swadaya Foundation, one of the oldest
and biggest Indonesian NGOs established more than 45 years ago, that has grown
into a giant social enterprise, comprising 17 smaller social enterprises
today. The very first winner of the Social Entrepreneur Award of the Year,
established by Ernst & Young in 2006 among many other awards also added,
“This ownership is important to cement their commitment to boosting the
empowerment process in the community wherever they are located, because our
nation’s challenge today is to eradicate the poverty that is still widespread
in such a rich country as ours.”
With the interest acquired during the event, this convention is set to
become an annual event, so that as the years pass, there will be a continuous
learning and networking process among universities in creating strategic
synergy aimed at increasing community empowerment and capacity and
eradicating poverty in a real, comprehensive and sustainable manner.
To ensure that a wide horizon and in-depth insight are well shared among
the participants, the convention brings together experts and prominent national
practitioners in areas of poverty alleviation, community empowerment, micro
financing, demography and other social issues. To name a few,
governmental speakers include Special Envoy of the President of Republic of
Indonesia on Poverty Alleviation, HS Dillon, Special
Staff to the President on
Economics and Development and Founder of AKSI UI, Firmanzah, Special
Envoy of the President of Republic of Indonesia on Millenium Development Goals, Nila
F Moeloek, and Poverty Reduction Director of the National Development Planning
Agency, Rudy S. Prawiradinata.
“To widen the horizon, this
convention also engages speakers from corporations, such as Sugiharto, the
president commissioner of state-owned petroleum company Pertamina, and
one of the founders of AKSI UI.” said Dewi Hutabarat, the Executive Director of AKSI UI. Also
representing corporations in the speakers’ lineup were Jerry Ng, President
Director of Bank BTPN which is actively involved in a micro financing programme
that reaches out to the remotest area in the country, and the Pertamina
Foundation with its intention of inviting universities to join the
tree-planting movement as part of the economic solution for empowering the
community. Dewi further
stated that apart from the open opportunity to network and exchange experience, this
convention also allows us to build a database of various efforts to alleviate
poverty and empowering the community that has been performed so far
in many regions of Indonesia. This will then become
comprehensive data for common reference.
In total, the convention presents approximately 40 speakers from
academics, poverty-related government bodies, activists as well as
corporations. “We want to make sure there will no longer be any silos in the
effort to eradicate poverty” Dewi said.
This convention is set as a medium for participants to share experience,
elaborate thoughts and ideas on driving strategic synergy in
various areas according to the respective geographical character and condition.
Furthermore, this convention also aims to formulate points of understanding
among the universities on its role to build cohesion and become a driver of
multi-party synergy in the effort to enhance community empowerment in a
sustainable manner.
At the end of the 3-day convention, participants gathered to formulate
points of understanding, as the crystallization of the discussions held
during the event. These points were then read aloud and signed by all
participants as a declaration. The document will be the starting point of an
action plan.
“We will monitor the
follow up of the declaration and we will discuss the updates at the convention
next year,” Dewi explained.
In his keynote speech, Prof. Dr. Subroto, one of AKSI UI founders and a
well-respected Economist, who was also appointed Minister of Cooperatives,
and Minister of Mining and Energy during the previous government and appointed the Secretary General of OPEC (Organisation
of Petroleum Exporting Countries) for two periods from 1988 to 1994 said
“Indonesia have been blessed with the 3 main assets, namely
geographic dividend, demographic dividend, and historical dividend. These 3 assets should
give no reason for Indonesia not to be able to free itself from
poverty. Indeed Indonesia has become the 16th largest economy in the world; nevertheless, the
country still has over 100 of the 250 million citizens living below the poverty
line. This means that urgent homework is needed for every element in the
country to work together in the effort to eradicate poverty from the
beloved land of Indonesia.”
“Indeed this is a starting
point, and maybe just as small a point as a drop of water. However, we will
continue to build our effort to create synergies all over Indonesia. We
believe, even small drops of water, when dropped consistently, can create a
hole even in a stone,” said Bambang Ismawan optimistically.
In
Bahasa Indonesia
In
Bahasa Indonesia and in English
http://www.binaswadaya.org/index.php?lang=en
Katosi
Women’s Development Trust in Uganda: When women take a hand in their own
development
By Judith Hitchman
Margaret Nakato from Uganda founded the Katosi Women’s Development Trust[1]
in 1996. Her objective, based on her own life experiences, was to empower other
women so that they could take charge of their own lives. She had witnessed her
father’s taking all the decisions on behalf of her mother, a midwife in Katosi,
on Lake Victoria, and believed that if women were able to earn their own
livelihoods, that they would be able to gain greater control and break with a
situation whereby they were mere possessions, at a time when many fisher men
had as many as 6 or 7 wives.
Traditionally, the women in Uganda on Lake Victoria had smoked and
salted fish that they traded regionally
and exported to the Congo, the Sudan and Rwanda. This activity helped these
women and their friends to gain some measure of financial control over their
lives. But with the demand for Nile perch that led to industrialisation of the
fishing on Lake Victoria, the catch had in recent years become a major export
industry for Nile perch, caught and sold directly to the processing plants,
using boats with freezers and improved handling sites all of which are designed
for export only.The small-scale fishers’ wives no longer had access to the fish
for smoking, and had lost what little financial independence they had. In this society,
widows, regardless of their order in a marriage (wife #1, 2 or 3, etc.) were
not bestowed any privileges or financial assurance for their future, unless the
husband had specifically given one an asset such as a house. This meant that
single women and widows were all having to leave Katosi, and move to the
islands on the lake or rural trading centres to gain access to the fish or
to find alternative employment opportunities. The issue of HIV-AIDS is
also very serious in the whole of the Lake Victoria region, and many men and
women were losing their lives. If a fisher died, the wife lost control of her
husband’s boat, making the situation even worse.
The first step of the project involved setting up a “tontine”, a typical
African system of merry-go-round micro-credit, whereby each woman pays a small
sum into a pool every week, and each woman takes it in turn to benefit from the
total amount saved. She did so with six or seven Catholic women she knew well.
The first initiative of KWDT was to support the women to help them keep
control of the boats. Fish catches were
high, and the women were paid a good price for their fish.
By 1998, the Katosi Women’s Group owned two boats, and a year later,
they began a micro-credit fund. Despite the boom, boats and fishing gear were
very expensive and unaffordable for many.
Some local fishermen and new fishers, interested in gaining from the
boom and high prices for the fresh fish started using poison to catch fish, and
this led to a ban on fish exports from the region for health and hygiene
reasons. The migration of fisher communities from the north due to war also
contributed to the introduction of bad fishing practice on Lake Victoria by
immigrants.
The Katosi Women’s Community was paralysed and poor, as they were so specialised
in fishing. Margaret decided that there was a need for multiple development and
opted to diversify into farming. A single cow could produce milk to help feed
several people - especially the children, and the manure could be used as
fertiliser… and help the women to survive.
B).jpg)
Margaret
Nakoto speaking at the World Fisheries Day, Lake Victoria, Uganda, November 21,
2012
By 1998,
the Katosi Women’s Group owned two boats, and a year later, they began a
micro-credit fund. Despite the boom, boats and fishing gear were very expensive
and unaffordable for many. Some local
fishermen and new fishers, interested in gaining from the boom and high prices
for the fresh fish started using poison to catch fish, and this led to a ban on
fish exports from the region for health and hygiene reasons. The migration of
fisher communities from the north due to war also contributed to the
introduction of bad fishing practice on Lake Victoria by immigrants.
The
Katosi Women’s Community was paralysed and poor, as they were so specialised in
fishing. Margaret decided that there was a need for multiple development and
opted to diversify into farming. A single cow could produce milk to help feed
several people - especially the children, and the manure could be used as fertiliser…
and help the women to survive.
By 2000,
there were 48 women involved in the KWDT. The situation regarding the lack of
access to clean water and sanitation had become critical in Katosi. Previously
it had been possible to fetch clean drinking water from the lake. But now water
hyacinth blocked the access, and muddied the water. Furthermore, the big
population on the lakeside was creating pollution. There was little or no
hygiene available to families; people were no longer able to wash in the lake,
as they had done in the past. People used wetlands as lavatories, and any toilets that existed
were in a bad state. Because of the high
water table, it is very expensive to construct the conventional type of pit
latrine in fisher communities, thus many families opt to use the bush. Coupled
with the high movement within fisher
communities following the fish, many households had temporary toilets.
A
programme of water, hygiene and health began in 2003, to enable women to gain
access to clean, safe water and adequate sanitation. By the end of the year,
KWFDA was engaging successful in agriculture, fishing and micro-credit . The
local women were increasingly proud of their achievements!
Another
year down the road, word of what KWDT was doing had started to spread
throughout the fisher communities. There were 4 applications by other groups to
join. With over one hundred members, the crucial issue had become the capacity
to manage a single large group! The solution was to form a network of women’s
groups that started with 4 groups. The network is now made up of 16 different
groups, and shared resources, skills and knowledge among 385 women! Training
for group leaders became a priority, with Katosi Women’s Development Trust
acting as an umbrella group. Activities also became extended to cover wider
interests, especially fisheries training.
The local
economic situation on the lakeside was still however very difficult. Many women
were indebted, due to the high costs of nets and engines as well as repairs.
Fish was increasingly being sold to middlemen with little or no benefit of
added value to the communities. Margaret, ever resourceful in her ideas,
encouraged the women to diversify into bee-keeping, mushroom farming and fish
farming, as well as animal keeping (chickens and pigs); the trading from these
activities enabled the women to access credit. It was all accompanied by
training.
Benefits
were immediately visible. Children were able to continue their schooling,
women’s self-esteem improved. An illustration of this is how one house that had
previously been referred to as “the widow’s house” was now called “the house of
the woman who has two cows”! The women have also progressively taken on roles
that were previously reserved for men, such as building water tanks… Women have
progressively also became involved as decision-makers within their local
communities, at Local Authority level, and helped build both transparency and
management of resources within their
communities. In a country previously reputed more for corruption than for
sustainable local development, this is indeed an important achievement.
In 2012,
during the World Water Forum held in Marseilles in France, Margaret Nakato
received the award of the third Kyoto World Water Grand Prize on behalf of the
KWDT. A fitting recompense for all the inspirational work that she and her
exceptional team have done in recent years. She was also co-president of the
World Fishing Forum, holding office until November 2012, when she passed on the
responsibility. She remains the Secretary General of the WFF, an activity that
fall under the umbrella of KWDT.
About the Newsletter
This Newsletter
is published in French, English, Spanish and Portuguese, It has been produced
on a totally voluntary basis since the first issue in 2003.
The Editorial
team wishes to thank the following volunteers for their support in translation
and revision:
Michel Colin
(Brazil)
Paula Garuz
Naval (Ireland)
Évéline Poirier
(Canada)
Brunilda Rafael
(France)
We also wish to
thank the Civil Policy Research Institute (CPRI) of Seikatsu Club in Japan for
the Japanese translation and AKSI UI for the translation to Bahasa Indonesia.
Our Newsletters
are available on the WEB:
http://local-development.blogspot.com/
To contact us
(for information, feedback, to subscribe or unsubscribe):
Yvon Poirier
ypoirier@videotron.ca
