Empowerment of Palm Sugar Peasants at the Forest Edge of Bogani Nani Wartabone National Park, Indonesia: A Study of Problems, Local Potentials, and Priority Ideas Towards Empowered Community

Abstract

This study analyzed the roots of problem of palm sugar peasants at the forest edge of Bogani Nani Wartabone National Park; local potentials in producing palm sugar as a livelihood base; and their priority ideas to create empowered communities. Data collection was done through observation, in-depth interviews, Focused Group Discussion, and literature. The results showed that there were many problems faced by peasants in producing palm sugar, namely the forest where they took firewood was taken over by the national park; discourse on resettlement following the construction of a reservoir; damaged road infrastructure; did not have adequate means of producing palm sugar; uneven government assistance; and marketing of palm sugar through middlemen. In addition to the existing problems, it turns out that there were a number of local potentials that peasants had in developing palm sugar production, namely palm trees growed naturally; palm gardens owned by the peasants themselves; every peasant had sufficient knowledge how to produce palm sugar; palm sugar production was a tradition from generation to generation; solidarity ties were still very strong; the existence of village-owned enterprises; and the concern of the village government to palm sugar peasants. Palm sugar peasants had a number of priority ideas to create an empowered community, namely asking the government to revoke the status of the national park area that took over the forest where peasants take firewood; stopped or moved the reservoir construction plan; road infrastructure improvements; assistance with facilities and infrastructure for producing palm sugar; assistance allocated by the government to prioritize poorer people who had never received before; and standardization of palm sugar prices.