by Adolf Marlon Tohatta
Alatep Village is located in Okaba District. It is located around 85 kilometers from Merauke City, with difficult and uncertain transportation availability. To reach Okaba, air transportation is available, but with an uncertain schedule. That does not include the potential for weather constraints.
The landscape of this village is dominated by houses with yards that are only overgrown with wild grass and a few coconut trees. This village also has a high dependence on debt to meet food needs, especially rice.
The listening survey process by YP3SP together with Alatep residents in —— (month, year) underlies the initiative of 10 residents to open a garden in a group, and name it ‘Paia Group’. Paia comes from the Malind language, a motivational sentence that means “let’s work, let’s create, let’s garden”.
The Paia garden measures 100×100 meters. This group grows vegetables and various local plants. To name a few: taro, banana, mbuti banana (traditional banana), and sweet potato, which are the staple foods of the Papuan Malind people. They make this effort primarily to meet their own food needs.
From the results of their gardening, the Paia Group consumes it themselves. Some of the rest they sell or share with their families in the village. In its development, this has succeeded in influencing and motivating other residents to start gardening in their respective yards. Through gardening together, the Paia Group revives the values of togetherness that were provided by their parents in the past. Living and working together to restore food sovereignty, and gradually reducing dependence on debt and aid.
The struggle of this group can be seen clearly. If previously in the yard of the residents’ houses there was no garden at all, now almost all houses have gardens.
Of course the story is not always sweet. Along the way, this group has also experienced misunderstandings due to lack of communication and dialogue among fellow group members.
Contact us
Yayasan Pengembangan Pelatihan untuk Perubahan Sosial di Tanah Papua
(YP3SP)
Jalan Karya Tanah Hitam Permai
Abepura Jayapura
Papua
Email: info@papuatransformation.org
ID