UNESCAP-CAPSA: CENTRE FOR ALLEVIATION OF POVERTY
THROUGH SECONDARY CROPS DEVEOPLMENT IN ASIA AND THE PACIFIC
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Historical Profile of Poverty Alleviation in Indonesia
 

The Government of Indonesia (GOI) has launched several
programmes to alleviate poverty. Among others are: (i) the
income improvement project for small farmers and fishermen
(called P4K) in 1980; (ii) the household income improvement
programme (called UPPKS) in 1991/1992; (iii) the development
programme for undeveloped rural areas (called IDT) in 1993-
1996; (iv) the household welfare development programme
(called PKS) in 1997/1998; (v) the food security programme
(program ketahanan pangan) in 1997-1999; (vi) the social safety
network (called JPS) in 1998, and some other similar
programmes.
Almost all programmes were implemented by providing poor
societies, including rural societies (mostly farmers) with soft
credit or revolving funds to enable them to run their individual
or group businesses. Unfortunately, none of these efforts have
been sustainable. The small-scale businesses were not well
developed and consequently there was no capital
accumulation for them to expand. Even the seed money (the
start-up capital) was used for daily family consumption leaving
the borrowers unable to repay their soft loans. Another
supporting system that GOI should develop is a rural soft credit
system incorporating a simple procedure. This facility is much
better than a revolving fund or other programme which tend to
create a moral hazard among rural societies and executing
agents.
However, supported by long-lasting high economic growth, the
long history of government effort to alleviate poverty
significantly reduced the poverty figure from 54.2 million
people or 40.1 per cent in 1976 to only 22.5 million or 11.3 per
cent in 1996 (BPS 2004). However, a massive economic crisis
in Indonesia in 1997-1999, simultaneously with a long drought
(El Nino) pushed the number of poor Indonesians to 48 million
or 23.4 per cent of the Indonesian population in 1999. The
gradual recovery of the economy reduced the incidence of
poverty to 37.3 million people in 2003 (BPS, 2003).
There were two good examples of projects that did not provide
farmers with soft loans or revolving funds for economic
business, but provided them with the construction of
infrastructure facilities, such as village roads, farm roads,
bridges, and irrigation facilities. The IDT project in 1993-1996
was designed to provide farmers with village roads, bridges,
drinking water, and sanitary facilities (bathroom with toilet).
However, the coverage areawas relatively small.
Currently, there is an ongoing poor farmers project (called
Poor Farmers Income Improvement through Innovation
Project = PFI3P), funded by soft loans from the Asian
Development Bank (ADB). The objective of PFI3P is to
increase farmers' innovation in solving their own problems.
PFI3P is aiming at empowering farming communities in rural
areas, especially those on marginal lands.
Through PFI3P, some innovations related to and supporting
agricultural development have been introduced to farmers at
the project sites. These innovations are based on identified
problems at the specific locations. The project hands
responsibility to rural societies to manage their budget for the
development of infrastructure and agricultural innovations
under the supervision of district administrators and local
NGOs. It is expected that eventually rural communities will be
capable of implementing development in accordance with
their needs, limiting the government's function to facilitator.
The project started in 2003 and will continue until 2008. The
project was implemented in five districts, namely, Blora and
Temanggung in Central Java, East Lombok in West Nusa
Tenggara, Ende in East Nusa Tenggara and Donggala in
Central Sulawesi. In each district there will be about 200
villages included in the project to develop infrastructure. The
main examples of infrastructure that influence
farming
systems are, among others: village roads, farm roads, irrigation
channels, markets, credit schemes, and information systems.
Due to budget limitations, the infrastructure being developed
by rural societies is in the form of farm roads, check-dams,
irrigation channels, wells, drying floors and information
systems. These facilities are aimed at overcoming the
problems associated with the transportation of agricultural
products, water shortages during the dry season, and flooding
during the wet season.
These two projects are thought to be more appropriate to help
farmers improve their agribusinesses. Integrated poor farmer
empowerment such as PFI3P can be considered as a model of
the future of rural development. Improvement in agricultural
technology to increase production is meaningless without the
development of supporting infrastructure. Nevertheless, its
implementation requires adequate control in order to achieve
effectively and efficiently the goal of farmer empowerment ¡

Written by Dewa K.S. Swastika, Senior Researcher, ICASERD,
Bogor, Indonesia.

Source: http://www.uncapsa.org/Flash/flash0605.pdf

[...]
 

About Protein-Energy Malnutrition

First recognized in the 20th century, protein-energy malnutrition
(PEM) is by far the most lethal form of malnutrition/hunger and
the one referred to as far as world hunger is concerned. PEM is a
lack of protein and food that provides energy. Approximately
850 million people worldwide are malnourished. Children are
the most visible victims of malnutrition. Malnutrition plays a role
in at least half of the 10.9 million child deaths each year.
Geographically, more than 70 per cent of PEM children live in
Asia, 26 per cent in Africa and 4 per cent in Latin America and the
Caribbean.
World Hunger Education Service, 2005. World Hunger Facts 2005,
http://www.worldhunger.org/articles/Learn/.

Source: http://www.uncapsa.org/Flash/flash0605.pdf
 

The 8 International Sago Symposium
4 - 6 August, 2005
Sasana Krida Building Governor Office
Jayapura, Papua, Indonesia
Contact:
Secretariat Committee
Ir. Y. P Karafir, M.Ec
Phone: + 62 986 211557
Fax: + 62 986 211557
Email: eisc2005@unipa.ac.id or yp.karafir@unipa.ac.id
Web: www.unipa.ac.id

Source: http://www.uncapsa.org/Flash/flash0605.pdf.
 

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