Juggling Sleeping Areas for Tourism

HUMAS PEMDA BANYUWANGI/SONY DWI FAJRIAN

An aerial view of the 2019 Agro Expo Banyuwangi site in Taman Suruh village, Glagah district, Banyuwangi, East Java, on May 3, 2019. The 2019 Agro Expo Banyuwangi was held on disused land belonging to the Banyuwangi regency administration. The land was converted in January into an agro tourism site.

It previously never occurred to Mukhlas, 38, that the conversion of idle land into land for recreation could result in him earning a decent wage. His good fortune is a result of the domino effect of the conversion of idle land into a new agro tourist destination in Banyuwangi.

Mukhlas used to be a construction worker. However, since an idle 5.8-hectare plot of land has been transformed into a place for agro expositions, his income has increased. He now works with 12 others at the Banyuwangi regency administration to manage the parking area at the Agro Expo.

Through a profit-sharing scheme, they got 70 percent of the total parking ticket income. Motorbike paid Rp 2,000 and cars Rp 5,000.

"All parking fee are collected and then divided equally. At a minimum, one person can earn Rp 250,000 per day. That amount is far greater than the wage for construction work, which is only Rp 90,000 per day," Mukhlas said.

Taman Suruh village resident Siami, 42, who sells food and beverages at the location, was also pleased with his earnings. "I used to be an app-based motorcycle taxi driver and earned only Rp 50,000 per day. Now, by selling food and beverages, I can earn Rp 500,000 per day."

Sunalis, 63, who sells meatball soup 200 meters from the site, said his turnover before the Agro Expo opened was only about Rp 300,000 per day. Now it can reach Rp 1 million per day.

Festival on idle land

Agro Expo is an annual festival held by the Banyuwangi administration in cooperation with the local agriculture office. It opened on April 25 this year.

Two years ago, Agro Expo was held on a rice field in the middle of the city. This year, the expo was held far from the city center, on idle land on the slopes of Mount Ijen in Taman Suruhvillage, Glagahdistrict.

Previously, the land, which in total measures 10 hectares, was covered in shrubs. "The land had been totally exploited and could not be cultivated or replanted. Geologically, the land is unproductive because it is dominated by rocks and is far from water sources," said the head of the horticulture production section of the Banyuwangi Agriculture Office, EkoMulyanto.

KOMPAS/ANGGER PUTRANTO

People visit the 2019 Agro Expo Banyuwangi in Taman Suruh village, Glagah district, Banyuwangi regency, East java, on April 29, 2019. The expo was held on idle land belonging to the Banyuwangi regency administration. The land has been converted into an agro tourism site.

Now 5.8 ha of the land has been transformed. Celosia plumosa flowers grow well there. For the 2017 and 2018 Agro Expos, the Banyuwangi Agriculture Office spent Rp 600 million on renting a 2.5 hectare plot.

This year, the festival was held on land owned by the Banyuwangi government. The land is wider and costs the administration nothing to use, except for the extra effort taken to develop it for the expo.

"It was decided in January to hold the Agro Expo on this land. Since then, we have provided good nutrition and organic fertilizer. We provided 30 tons of organic fertilizer and built irrigation channels stretching 3 kilometers," Eko said.

New destination

The Banyuwangi Agriculture Office not only nurtures the land but has also made the Agro Expo a new recreation destination. Residents flocked to enjoy the beauty of various plants and the landscape of the Bali Strait and Bali Island on the east side, and Mount Raung to the west. At night, colorful lights made the Agro Expo more vibrant.

Visitors could also interact with various types of livestock. Children could fed carrots to rabbits and grass to goats and cows. In the plantation zone, visitors could pick oranges, mangosteen and other fruits. The committee also built an entertainment area. The Agro Expo opened every day from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

The head of the local agriculture office, AriefSetiawan, said that every day an average of 6,000 people visited the Agro Expo. On the weekend of April 27 and 28, visitors reached 9,000 on both days.

"This was beyond our expectations. Visitors numbered only 3,000 to 4,000 daily at the previous two Agro Expos, but this year reached up to 9,000 per day," he said.

KOMPAS/ANGGER PUTRANTO

An agricultural extension worker from the Banyuwangi Agriculture Agency has developed a hydro-organic planting technique that combines rice farming with fish farming at the Agro Expo Banyuwangi in Taman Suruhvillage, Glagahdistrict, Banyuwangiregency, East Java, on April 29, 2019. Hydro-organic agriculture is one of the new agricultural methods that can be used on idle land and in urban settings

Seeing that the land has the potential to become a tourist attraction and center of agro education, Banyuwangi Regent Abdullah Azwar Anas requested that the expo be extended by a few days. It was initially scheduled to end on May 1, which the regent requested be extended until May 4. He also requested that land be maintained so that it could become a new tourist destination.

"If necessary, agricultural extension workers could routinely arrange agricultural field trips there. The meetings could give tricks and tips to overcome pests and disease or increase agricultural production," said Anas.