Empowering the Community of Dimembe Village Through the Application of Cultivation and Diversification Technology of Papaya Fruit Plants

Abstract

Dimembe Village has been famous for a long time as a centre for export quality papaya production. However, last few years papaya has papaya prices have decreased. Farmers choose not to pick papaya fruit in the garden because the cost of picking and loading is not comparable to the selling price. Priority problems experienced by most farmer groups in this village are: nursery, planting, fertilizing, and maintenance technology are still conventional; also variations in post-harvest product diversification are still lacking. To answer these problems, the community service program, Program Pemberdayaan Masyarakat Unggulan Perguruan Tinggi (PPMUPT) scheme has been carried out in 2019 (the first year, from a three year plan). The method of conducting the activities includes technology dissemination, training, application, and mentoring for papaya cultivation and diversification. The application of science and technology of cultivation includes, land management, seed and plant preparation, fertilizing, and maintaining, while diversification includes making fruit chips using a vacuum frying machine. The implementation of PPMUPT in the first year had a positive impact on the farming community in the form of increased knowledge, attitudes, and skills in the cultivation and diversification of fruit crops.