November 3, 2015 edition
More Outreach articles in other editions
October 27, 2015 edition
A large, neatly tied pile of burlap sacks sits at a cooperative office in Solok, West Sumatra. The aroma instantly gives away its contents coffee beans. In the backyard is an area reserved for drying.
Coffee plantations pepper the hillside of Danau Atas, which sits 1,200 meters above sea level. Syafrizal Rado Endah, 51, is a coffee farmer in the area, tilling more than 1,500 coffee plants. He said that at one point, his plants were so plentiful he could produce 50 kilograms of freshly picked Arabica coffee fruit every two weeks. "I sell them at Rp6,000 a kilogram," he said. All told, he earns about Rp 600,000 per month selling coffee.
Read More
October 20, 2015 edition
A long drawn out dry season has led to serious cases of drought in many regions of Indonesia. The water levels of major rivers have dropped drastically, fields have baked dry, causing harvest failures everywhere. Severe water shortage has hit both rural areas and townships alike.
This serious problem, according to Mudjiadi, director-general of water resources at the public works and public housing ministry, cannot be managed in a sectoral manner. Technical solutions, such as building water-pipes, reservoirs and dams are not enough. The problem needs an integrated and comprehensive solution.
Read More
October 13, 2015 edition
October 6, 2015 edition
Lisa Rumaikewi carefully took three brown threads and began braiding them, forming the start of a noken, the traditional Papua bag. Her house is normally empty during the day when her husband is at work and her three children are at school. Lisa said that is the best time to work on her noken. "The bag has to be meticulously crafted, only when I have free timethat's when I like to weave so I can focus on creating it with the best quality," said the 33-year-old woman.
In a month, she makes just one or two noken and about 100 traditional Papuan beaded accessories, such as necklaces and bracelets. She does not want to take too much time away from her husband and children. But even with her limited time, Lisa can earn about Rp300,000 a month.
Read More
September 29, 2015 edition
Crowdfundingfinancing a project or a business by raising money from the publicis a relatively new trend in Indonesia. According to Fajar Hutomo, Deputy Director of Access to Finance at the Creative Economy Agency, it has only become popular five years ago. But actually, Indonesia is familiar to koperasi (cooperatives), a collective system of funding. "That's the original Indonesian crowdfunding," said Fajar.
Crowdfunding is a project-based systemnot a long term financing institution. Nevertheless, its effectiveness has been proven through the use of local websites such as kitabisa.com or wujudkan.com, that have successfully financed various charities, startup businesses, as well as social entrepreneurship.
Read More
September 22, 2015 edition