Food Empowering Housewives

Marnim process food and forest resources into edible snacks. They even plant vegetables in the yard as a backup in the event of a sudden need.

KOMPAS/KHAERUL ANWAR

Marnim, 46, a motivator of women in Jenggala village, Tanjung district, North Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, who is also the chairperson of the Meleko Bangkit Women\'s Cooperative, whose members are housewives.

Marnim, 46, along with other housewives in her village has a strategy to overcome the risk of food crisis for residents in the village. The residents of Dasan Tengak hamlet, North Lombok, process food and forest resources into edible snacks. They even plant vegetables in the yard as a backup in the event of a sudden need.

Various snacks made by Marnim and the housewives not only aim to meet the needs of their own families, but are also to be sold. The profits are additional income that is needed by the family.

Marnim encourages the mothers to always process the crops from the farms and gardens so that they have added value. "We planted tomatoes, chilies and Moringa in the yard. If an earthquake happens, there are already food reserves," said Marnim, Saturday (9/11/2019). Marnim\'s house in Jenggala village, Tanjung district, North Lombok Regency, West Nusa Tenggara, is sandwiched between rice fields and a number of fishponds.

If an earthquake happens, there are already food reserves

Experience teaches Marnim that she must always be prepared to face disasters that come unexpectedly. An earthquake devastated her entire village. The housewives lost their logic and expected help from others for foods and drinks. In this traumatic condition, Marnim was there to move the spirit of housewives to overcome problems after the earthquake.

In 2010, Marnim pioneered the establishment of the Meleko Bangkit women\'s business group (KUP). The group consists of the wives of the Forest Farmer Group of 28 people. They produce banana chips and Robusta coffee powder, which is now a mainstay of the residents. At that time the residents collected 1 kilogram of coffee per person for the initial capital of their business.

They decided to produce banana chips because the raw material, bananas, is always available, and even a source of income every day, even though the selling price is relatively cheap. Likewise, coffee is planted in a intercropping style in a plantation adjacent to their village. Residents once had to sell coffee beans to collectors for Rp 18,000 kilogram, below the prevailing market price of Rp 20,000 per kilogram.

KOMPAS/KHAERUL ANWAR

Marnim

On that basis, Marnim asked members not to sell coffee beans and bananas to collectors, but instead process the crops to receive more competitive prices. To process the products, Marnim was assisted by a non-governmental organization that provides technical training to the members. The making of banana chips is left entirely to the members, but Marnim assists the roasting of the coffee beans.

"If the members roast the beans, I must accompany them so that the coffee beans do not get burned. I must ensure the beans get roasted to the desired level of maturity," she said.

The coffee beans that have been roasted are ground in a machine, packed and sold for Rp 15,000 per 150 grams. To market the banana chips and coffee products (now including variants of pure coffee, ginger coffee and rice coffee), Marnim goes around marketing the products to the nearest kiosks or to the city of Tanjung, the capital city of North Lombok regency.

Women\'s Cooperative

The proceeds from the sale of the products are deposited at the KUP, which has been a women\'s cooperative since 2015. Roasting service fees – Rp 8,000 for per 3 kg coffee beans -- are also deposited and can be withdrawn at the annual members\' meeting or in the form of annual shares. Money is also allocated for Idul Fitri holiday allowance every year.

In addition to coffee, of which 50 kilograms is produced per month on average, Marnim also coordinates with bamboo craftsmen who produce bags, wallets, flower vases and spice containers. Most of the orders are from Denpasar, Bali.

With income from various types of businesses, when the 6.9 magnitude earthquake hit Lombok on Sunday, Aug. 5, 2018, members of the cooperative could recover faster. Many cooperative members were victims of the disaster and production equipment, such as furnaces for coffee roasting, was destroyed in the earthquake.

In acknowledgment of her role in empowering women, Marnim received an award from the Oxford Committee for Famine Relief/Oxfam Indonesia along with six other women in Mataram, last year.

I want to show them the results of my efforts.

Marnim achievements have been a long journey. She first needed to change the behavior of the village’s housewives, who knew nothing about organization and were reluctant to discuss their opinions.

"Anytime they were invited to sangkep [meeting], they said ape te mau’ milu sangkep [what would I get from it] or ‘a cooperative would not last long’," Marnim said.

In fact, to gather the housewives, Marnim went door to door reminding them to be present at the meeting. Of the dozens of housewives present at the sangkep, only 28 have made commitments to date.

The locals\' cynicism and apathy was tolerated by Marnim. Like the proverb in Sasak, ”mara’ pelisa’ bawon batu, lamun ndek man gita’ ndek man nyadu” [like bugs on a rock, if you haven\'t seen the results, you don\'t believe it). “Therefore, I want to show them the results of my efforts," she said.

As she wants to see the local people get empowered economically, Marnim was willing to spend personal money on gasoline to help sell the products. "As the chairperson of the cooperative, I should get an honorarium, but I don\'t want to. The shares of the business [SHU] and the bonus I receive are the same as those of other members," said Marnim.

Marnim finally overcame the cynicism, with 33 people now members of the cooperative.

KOMPAS/KHAERUL ANWAR

Marnim

The housewives — like during the 2018 earthquake — can save on household expenses, such as buying vegetables, tomatoes, chilies and other vegetables, because they can just pick them in their yards. Then to pay for schooling and their children\'s uniforms, members can take loans from the cooperative or set aside shares from the cooperative, which now has Rp 200 million in assets. The coffee is sold at souvenir shops in Mataram and three agencies in North Lombok.

Her efforts to produce tangible results make Marnim feel satisfied because she is able to counter thecynicism and apathy of housewives, who are now clearly demonstrating efforts to be economically independent by maximizing agricultural resources, especially food and forest products in the village.

"Now, if they are invited to sangkep, the housewives will definitely sign the attendance list. In the past, let alone sign the attendance list, they always did not come, "said Marnim about the changing behavior of housewives in her village.

Marnim

Born: 31 December 1973, Todo hamlet, Bentek village, Gangga district, North Lombok regency.

Job: Chairperson of Meleko Bangkit women cooperatives

Husband: Raden Madri (48)

Children:

- Bay Yaratama, tourism student at Merdeka University, Malang, East Nusa Tenggara

- Nia Karunia, Veterinarian student at Brawijaya University, Malang, East Java

Education:

- SDN 1 Todo, graduated in 1986

- SMPN 1 Gangga, North Lombok, graduated in 1989 - SMEA Negeri 1 Mataram, graduated in 1991