Outreach Development of ’s Outlying Areas

Life-Preserving Mangroves in MOST people living along the coastal ar- eas of Mimika in Papua rely heav- ily on their 200,000 hectares of mangrove forests for their livelihood. Hence, the lo- cal government, with the assistance of USAID, has initiated projects to conserve the environment and improve people’s lives in a sustainable way. One example is to prevent the overexploitation of the mud crabs that are endemic to the area and in great demand around the coun- try. Towards this objective, the chief of Ohotya village has applied strict regula- tions against the abuse of mangrove for- ests and warning people of the dire con- sequences should the mangroves be de- stroyed or their products depleted. As an alternative source of income, the women of Pigapu Village pick mangrove leaves to produce a form of herbal tea. Tempo Eng- lish reports from Papua on the occasion of International Mangrove Day on July 26. TEMPO/AMANDA SIDDHARTA TEMPO/AMANDA

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MONEY- MAKING MUD CRABS The people of Ohotya village in Papua, rely on mud crabs for their livelihood. The village chief works with the local fi sheries agency to ensure the sustainability of the crustacean delectable.

HOTYA village in Mimi- ka Regency, Papua, was lively in the afternoon. Children came out to play O around their stilt houses as the adults nished their daily chores. Ansalma Matnarewa, one of the villag- ers, just returned from the mangrove forest not far from her village. She was carrying a medium-sized noken, a tradi- tional woven bag. Ansalma put the bag on the oor of her kitchen and checked her catch of the day. Unprepared, she accidental- ly let out a large mud crab (Scylla serra- ta), also known as karaka in the local language. Still covered in mud, the crab walked sideways across the room, its claws up in the air ready to attack. “Careful, those claws can hurt people “The big ones I can sell for Rp50,000. taurants all over the city that sell mud badly,” the 32-year-old woman told Tem- For the small one, I can probably get crabs. po English last month. Rp40,000,” Ansalma said. Ansalma said the price of mud crabs She took her small child, who had She sold the mud crabs to collectors in was better now because the village been watching her in the kitchen, out the village. These collectors would gath- chief had come up with a rule that stip- of harm’s way and grabbed a long, thin er as many crabs as possible from the ulates collectors take turns in harvest- metal hook to hold down the mud crab. villagers and transport them to Timi- ing the crabs. Previously, the villagers With ease, Ansalma held the wetland ka, the capital city of Mimika Regen- could sell however many crabs to the 10 creature right in the middle of its shell cy. Karaka is a popular delicacy in Pap- col lec tor s i n t he v i l lage. T h i s pu shed t he and quickly tied the claws with plastic ua, especially in the Mimika Regency. price of the crabs down since the collec- rope to incapacitate it. She did the same Its large size and shell hide a lot of crab tors took a long time to gather enough thing to the two other crabs in her no- meat. Visitor can easily nd karaka crabs to transport to . ken, one looked smaller than the others. dishes in Timika. There are many res- “ T hey have to make su re t he crabs are alive. Dead crabs are worthless,” said Lukas Harepa, 35, a villager who hunts mud crabs for a living. That is why the OUTREACH TEAM collectors must bring the mud crabs to Project Coordinator: Amanda Siddharta | Editors: Hermien Y. Kleden, Purwani Diyah Prabandari | the city as fast as they can. Writer: Amanda Siddharta | Photographer: Agung Chandra | Design & Layout: Ahmad Fatoni However, the boat ride from the vil-

48 | | SEPTEMBER 4, 2016 Children of the Kamoro tribe playing in the mangrove forest nearby Ohotya Village, Despite last year’s marine affairs and Mimika, Papua. sheries ministerial regulation prohib- iting the capture of crabs less than 15 Ansalma showing the mud crab she caught. centimeters in length and fertilized fe- male crabs, Ansalma was getting fewer crabs this year. She admitted sometimes lage to Timika takes about two hours crabs within a day or two. But Ansalma she would still sell the smaller or fertil- along the river. The crab collectors will is unhappy as she must work harder to ized female crabs to the collectors. lose money over the transportation cost catch the mud crabs in the mangrove “It’s against the regulation, but I need if they only bring a small number of forest. to earn money for my family,” Ansalma mud crabs at a time. “There used to be so many karaka said. “A villager can catch two to three mud around here. We didn’t have to travel crabs—four if we’re lucky,” Lukas said. so far or spend too long to catch them,” ■ ■ ■ “We usually don’t go hunting on Sun- Ansalma said. DANIEL Bipowaro, the village chief, days because we go to Sunday service at These days, Ansalma has to go by boat was fed up with the disorganization church.” to an uninhabited island nearby be- among the collectors and villagers that Around 125 families currently live in cause Ohotya village has no more mud was costing them not only money but Ohotya village. With the village rule in crabs. The villagers had harvested mud also valuable time.

PHOTOS: TEMPO/AMANDA SIDDHARTA TEMPO/AMANDA PHOTOS: force, the collectors can gather enough crabs without care for sustainability. “Karakas have to be cooked fresh so

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they must be alive by the time it reach- said. her team also had a session for women es the consumer, unlike sh that can be The village chief also calls on the col- only in the village. She explained that preserved or processed,” Daniel said. lectors to stop buying small or fertilized Ohotya villagers were from the Kam- In January, he gathered all villagers, crabs from the villagers. Although the oro tribe and their women usually went including the collectors to announce villagers know of the ministerial regu- out hunting for mud crabs. “The women his plan for a xed timetable for the 10 lation against the practice, the villagers can then remind the men about the reg- collectors in the village. He said that it continue to sell such crabs because the ulations,” she said. was not easy in the beginning because collectors buy them. Sopiah expressed her appreciation those collectors like to compete against Sopiah Katili, communication staff at for Ohotya village chief’s cooperation each other. But Daniel convinced them the Mimika Regency marine and sher- and support. A new round of social get- and the villagers that they can save time ies agency, said her unit has done social togethers on the regulation will take and money by transporting more place in September since the vil- mud crabs at a short period of lagers continue to out it due to time to Timika. economic constraints. “There will also be less chance In addition, Sopiah’s unit plans of the crabs dying in the middle of to hold vocational training pro- the journey,” he said. Neverthe- grams for the villagers on culti- less, a few deaths along the way vating mud crabs in the village. are usual as long as the number is Sopiah realized that it would be below 5 percent of the total num- di cult to ask villagers to re- ber of mud crabs transported. turn the mud crabs they caught. He then put up a large timeta- “What we can do is offer a solu- ble with all the names of the col- tion,” she said. lectors in the village hall. Each Sopiah pointed to the village’s of them gets three days to collect potential for aquaculture and the and transport mud crabs. During short time it would take to grow this time period, the other col- the crustaceans to a desired and lectors are not allowed to do the legal length and weight. same. “With aquaculture, we can Daniel said that the regula- stop the overexploitation of Pap- tion was effective in stabilizing uan mud crabs in the village,” she the price of mud crabs in his vil- said. “This can also improve their lage. Lately, however, the price quality and selling price.” for them has gone down because Meanwhile, Rini Sulistyowati, of lower demands for them in the the USAID Lestari eld commu- city. nication and advocacy special- “The prices are slightly low- ist, said the villagers could uti- er now. The big ones could fetch lize Yapero Island—an uninhab- more than Rp50,000 before,” the ited island a few kilometers away village chief said. from Ohotya village—as an area Because the village rule is not for aquaculture. formally codi ed as a village reg- “We want them to care more ulation, collectors face no sanc- about the environment because tions when they break the rule Ohotya is part of the Lorentz Na- by working outside their allocat- tional Park. At the same time, ed time slots. “It can be a problem at Villagers’ meeting at the Ohotya village they will have economic empower- times since they often ght each other,” hall, Papua. ment through sustainable processing of he added. mangrove resources,” said Rini. By year’s end, Daniel will alter the Sopiah highlighted the importance village rule by imposing sanctions get-togethers on the new mud crab reg- for villagers to preserve their envi- and penalties against those who break ulation since it rst came out in 2015. ronment. “For people in the city, their them. “We did another one a few months af- ATMs (automated teller machines) are “But rst I will gather the collectors ter that,” she said. in banks. For the villagers of Ohotya, and hear them out. After that, we will Facilitated by the United States Agen- their ATMs are in the mangrove forests. draw up a regulation that will bene t cy for International Development That’s where they get their money,” she ■ everyone, including the villagers,” he (USAID) Lestari program, Sopiah and added. DOC. PRIVATE PHOTOS:

50 | | SEPTEMBER 4, 2016 Drying Acanthus leaves for herbal tea at Pigapu Village in Mimika, Papua.

TEA OF LIFE into tea. But even when she learned that The women of Pigapu Village in Papua learn to make herbal tea she was given the opportunity to join from mangrove leaves. They have exhibited their products the coastal eld school facilitated by the in several cities. United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Indonesia Forest and Climate Support (IFACS) and Man- grove Action Project (now known as ERLINDA Mawane sat on turned a darker color and gave a grassy Blue Forests), she was apprehensive to the porch in front of her aroma. She took a sip of the tea, saying learn. house in Pigapu Village, that it was supposed to be consumed “I thought it would be too much work. Mimika Regency, Papua. without sugar. Other people here usually just catch B She had a bowlful of dried Berlinda produces the tea on her own. mud crab or make noken (traditional leaves on the table next to her, with a tea In addition to drinking it herself, she Papuan woven bags) and they can get pot and two small cups. She took a hand- also sells the product. Every few times money immediately,” she said, high- ful of the dried leaves, put it inside the a week, she goes to the mangrove for- lighting the hunting and gathering cul- pot with hot water. est near her village to collect the Acan- ture in the village. “Let it steep for a couple of minutes,” thus leaves. She then cuts the leaves into Her husband Sebastian, however, con- Belinda said. She explained the tea she small pieces and put it on a large woven vinced her to give it a try. After learning was making was not just normal tea, but tray to dry it under the sun. to make mangrove tea and discovering herbal tea made of the Acanthus leaves “It can take up to two days if the weath- the health bene ts that she feels from that grow in the mangrove forest. The er i s n ice a nd s u n ny, but it ’s d i cult dur- drinking the tea herself, Berlinda was 45-year-old woman said that she regu- ing rainy season because it might take a grateful. She can get an extra income by larly drank the tea every morning and week,” Berlinda said. When the leaves selling it to other villagers. afternoon because she felt that it im- have turned light brown, that means it Moreover, she participates in an ex- proved her health. is ready to be packed. Berlinda said she hibition in Timika, the capital city of “I had lung problems before, but ever could produce around 10 small packag- Mimika Regency, twice a year. Berlinda since I started drinking the mangrove es of tea a day. said she could make around Rp600,000 tea, the problem seems to have gone Berlinda admitted that at rst, she from her mangrove tea alone at each away. It also calms me down,” she add- did not know the leaves that grow abun- event.

TEMPO/IQBAL LUBIS ed. After a couple of minutes, the water dantly around her village can be made Last year, she was also invited to an

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exhibition in Makassar. “I wouldn’t imagine it before, but I have visited the cities and stayed in a hotel,” she said. They now have a group of 10 women in the village who produce mangrove tea. Meanwhile, Sebastian, who is the vil- lage chief, said that because he had seen how useful mangroves were for their livelihood, he encouraged the villagers to maintain their mangrove forests. “If it’s gone, our livelihoods are also gone. So it’s important for us to protect our environment,” he said.

✮ ✮ ✮ THE coastal eld school, or Sekolah Lapang Pesisir in Indonesian, is a pro- gram carried out by the USAID with the help of Mangrove Action Project, now renamed Blue Forests, in 2014 as the sub-contractor. Rio Ahmad, site manager for Blue Forests, said that the concept of coastal eld school was applied in eight villag- es in Papua, one of which being Pigapu. He added that it was similar to the voca- tional training developed by the Food and Agriculture Agency (FAO), which is customized so that the participants can learn more by practici ng i n the eld. Herbal tea made of Acanthus leaves that ly participated in the coastal eld train- “But their program is usually in the grow in the mangrove forests of Mimika ing. They went through 10 classes with lowlands or highland, and mostly for Regency, Papua. the facilitators. Rio said that after two agriculture.” said Rio. “Ours is speci - or three classes, they started to leave be- cally for the people in the coastal area.” cause some of them felt l i ke they had not The team from the USAID and Man- seen the result fast enough. grove Action Project rst did an assess- But with the help of Berlinda, some ment on each village. The local people of the women participants returned. were involved in the process. They were Nevertheless, it was not an easy task to Now, there are 10 women who are ac- the ones who had to identify potential convince the villagers to participate in tive in producing mangrove tea. Rini resources in their area. Rio said that the the vocational training. The villages are Sulistyowati, USAID’s eld communi- training program was different for the mainly composed of the Kamoro tribe, cation and advocacy specialist, said that each villages. “Some have a program in whose livelihood depended on gather- when they nally participated in an ex- processing palm sugar, while others in ing food from the forests or rivers. hibition in Timika, they received praise cultivating mud crabs,” he added. “That’s the main challenge, if creat- f r om v i s itor s b ec au se of t he i r m a n g r ove Meanwhile, Rio said, Pigapu wom- ing a product involves a long process, products. en were taught to make mangrove tea they usually would not remember it “In that moment, they felt appreciat- leaves and cakes by using the leaves and well. And once the facilitation is over, ed and their hard work nally paid off, fruits that grow abundantly in nearby they would forget everything,” he said. some of them even shed a tear,” she said. mangrove forests. That is why the main goal for the After facilitating their training, Rio Rio added that there had been re- USAID and Mangrove Action Project in w i l l he l p t he w ome n of P i g apu w i t h m a r - search and studies on mangrove tea this case is to rstly change the mindset keting strategies so that they can sell made of Acanthus leaves in India and of the people. “Economic empowerment the mangrove products outside Mimi- Bangladesh. “There are studies that say is only secondary, our primary focus is ka Regency and get the certi cate from the mangrove tea is good for health. Ber- to change people’s perception,” Rio ex- the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency l i nd a i s a l so d r i n k i n g it ever yd ay for her plained. (BPOM). “We will start next year,” Rio ■ health,” he said. In Pigapu Village, 15 women initial- said. SIDDHARTA TEMPO/AMANDA

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