"What we are doing is becoming a people's economic force that does not only depend on working in the corporate or mining sector. "Residents in Pulo Merah can be empowered in their own area and can even create their own jobs."
That's what Suyitno, a tourism actor in Pulo Merah, Banyuwangi Regency, said when sharing his experience at an 'inclusive chat' held by KEMITRAAN Indonesia on 10 August 2023.
Suyitno works as a surfing instructor on a daily basis. He also rents out his personal surf boards for rent to visiting tourists. Not only that, he also acts as a lifeguard in case tourists drown while swimming at the beach.
"Even though the salaries of tourist workers in Java are very small, I don't think about that. "The most important thing is how I try to make sure that tourists can walk comfortably and calmly while on the beach," added Suyitno.
Suyitno said that while he was working as a tourist worker, there were lots of people, especially young people, who came to the beach to ask for solutions or share experiences about the difficulty of getting a decent job. Usually, young people who graduated from Senior High School (SMA) or Vocational High School (SMK) often approach Suyitno to ask for jobs.
“I finally encouraged them and taught them to be self-empowered with the abilities and talents they have to be able to strengthen their economy. "Right, many young people now use social media, why not develop it from there so that it can become an income for them," he explained.
Seeing these conditions, Suyitno ended up not just giving advice, but he offered the young people to learn to surf and become volunteer lifeguards for free. Suyitno also opened classes for high school (SMA) children who wanted to work while studying.
“So that you don't always expect the government. So if this society has a strong economy, it is clear that riots can be minimized. "We also gave proposals to schools to send their children to us to study community economics."
Suyitno also often invites discussions with students majoring in agriculture who often come to visit the beach to be able to help farmers by creating agricultural products so that farmers' harvests and sales are good.
"There was one student who finally produced a product from dragon fruit that could be exported abroad. This is one of the motivations for us to work for this country."
What Suyitno is doing is to ensure that young people in his area become independent, people-based entrepreneurs. He is worried when young people who graduate from school and cannot afford to go to college have to sit idle at home and earn nothing.
Suyitno said that almost more than 200 traders in Pulo Merah are involved in managing our tourism. By collaborating with Perhutani, represented by PT Palawi, the Banyuwangi government and community organizations, Red Pulo tourism can now be independent in terms of income and knowledge.
The economic impact is also increasing. Traders around Pulo Merah are now successful in selling their agricultural products at the district and even sub-district levels. For example, the association of dragon fruit hawkers has now started to innovate in selling dragon fruit syrup, dragon fruit dodol and even dragon fruit chips.
“And they go into coaching once a month. "So we gathered them and gave them assistance so that they could be innovative," explained Suyitno.
The income from rental services will also be distributed to support the operations of surf schools and volunteer lifeguards. The rest will be distributed to young people who work per day.
Suyitno and his group of friends in Pulo Merah also recycle waste into fertilizer. Seeing the anxiety of many farmers who do not get fertilizer subsidies and have to spend more money to buy chemical fertilizers. “Even so, sometimes the stock runs out quickly. You can't do it often either."
Farmers are encouraged to take their household waste to a waste recycling center so they can receive free organic fertilizer in return. Not only are they independent, they can also maintain cleanliness and sustainability around the beach.
In contrast to Suyitno, who focuses on the coastal tourism ecosystem, Teh Jarsih is now the head of the sugar ant group for tappers in the Kasepuhan Cibarani area. At first he followed in the footsteps of his parents who were also tappers. Starting from learning how to dry, make, record and distribute, now Teh Jarsih is trusted to manage this business group.
"The system in that group is that every tapper who sells his produce is rewarded with 23 thousand per kilo. "So, 3 thousand will be deducted from the sale proceeds to be saved and used as savings for the tapper," explained Teh Jarsih.
These savings can later be used as capital for the tapper if they are in trouble. It can also be used for family needs if you experience limited income.
Teh Jarsih sees that with the existence of this group, the impact of improving the economy on society will be more humane. If previously they were paid less than usual, with the existence of this group they can be paid much more expensively. The bonus is that they can get money from the savings from the people's investment.
"But currently there are still not many tappers who are willing to commit to making ant sugar. This is because the tools used are still manual so it takes a lot of time and effort. We are also still selling products around this area, they haven't come out yet. "Access here is very far if you want to sell by delivery," explained Teh Jarsih.
What Suyitno and Teh Jarsih did in Pulo Merah and Kasepuhan Cibarani became a competing narrative about the power and impact of the people's economy itself. According to Suyitno, this community economic empowerment has reduced the independent standards of the people in Banyuwangi.
They no longer think that work must be in companies or mining. Moreover, the presence of companies and mining in their area actually breaks the unity of the community itself. Not to mention the impact of environmental damage caused by mining activities.
“We want to live in peace, comfort and independence. Want to be empowered by the existing people's economy. "I don't want to depend on the government and job opportunities which actually make things difficult," said Suyitno.
Suyitno emphasized that if the government really wants to help empower communities with their economic results, training and empowerment should be carried out directly in the regions. So that those who get the opportunity to learn are evenly distributed.
“I often see that the government provides training in hotels. Later the transportation money will be reimbursed. But it was the same people who left who didn't change. So there is inequality too. "The government should pick up the ball, not take the ball to another stadium," he concluded.
