Prospering Labuan Bajo Coastal Communities, KKP Collaborates With Local PBNU Elements

Illustration (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (KKP) encourages the welfare and economic growth of coastal communities in Labuan Bajo, East Nusa Tenggara through the Advanced Fishermen's Village (Kalaju) program by cooperating with the local Nahdlatul Ulama (PBNU) Executive Board.

Director General of Aquaculture KKP Haeru Rahayu said this strategy aims to increase the role of the people in supporting marine sector development programs.

"This is a form of empowering the potential of people throughout Indonesia," he said in a press statement during a working visit to Labuan Bajo, Saturday, February 5.

According to Haeru, the designation of the Maju Fisherman Village is aimed at Warloka Pesisir Village, Komodo District. The village which is under the guidance of PBNU, almost all of its inhabitants make a living as fishermen.

There are at least 259 fishermen with traditional boats under 5 GT and fishing rods. Meanwhile, the main commodities that are occupied by local fishermen are grouper, fish, and octopus.

Haeru added, collaboration with various parties is needed, from local governments, ministries/agencies, to state-owned enterprises, with a focus on improving and structuring public infrastructure such as the procurement of basic needs for electricity, clean water, and road repairs.

"The implementation of the KKP in the form of technical guidance on the manufacture of fishing gear, technical guidance for institutional capacity building, as well as empowerment for fishermen's wives such as training in making fish floss, fish crackers according to the potential that exists in the village, so that community productivity can take place from upstream to downstream," he said.

For information, KKP itself targets to be able to build 120 Advanced Fisherman Villages spread throughout Indonesia by 2022. Meanwhile, for the upcoming 2023 period, it targets 250 villages, and by 2024 as many as 500 villages.

Previously, the Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Sakti Wahyu Trenggono said the Maju Fisherman Village program aims to present a clean, comfortable, advanced and independent fishing village. This program is also to answer the problem of extreme poverty that mostly occurs in coastal areas.

To note, KKP and PBNU have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) related to the marine and fisheries sector development program through empowering the potential of the people. The signing of the MoU coincided with the 96th NU Birthday (Harlah) in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan on Monday, January 31, 2021 ago.