Impacts of banana blood disease outbreak to the farmers’ households food security in Sumba Island, East Nusa Tenggara Province, Indonesia

Abstract

Bananas are cultivated everywhere in Indonesia, including in the dryland areas of East Nusa Tenggara. In the province, diferrent banana cultivars are cultivated for different purposes. Well adapted the dry climate, Musa ABB Pisang Kepok is the most widely cultivated in the province, including in Sumba Island where it is known locally as Pisang Marmi. Unfortunately, despite its ability to adapt to dry climate, this banana cultivar is susceptible to most destructive disease of banana, especially to blood diseaae of banana (BDB). It was not surprising that when an outbreak of this disease took place in the island in early 2000s, it was this banana cultivar that was suffered the most. This article was based on a research project conducted in 2019, aimed at determining impacts caused by the outbreak to local economy, especially to food security, and understanding responses of the local governments to the outbreak. The study employed a mixed method approach, in which data were collected through a survey by interviewing 63 farmers, community leaders, and government officers. The resulting quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistical analysis, whereas the qualitative data were subject to thematic analysis. Results of the analysis indicated that the BDB outbreak severely impacted the local food security in particular and the local economy in general. The outbreak was still ravaging, kept spreading, destroying bananas in the island, especially the Musa ABB Pisang Kepok known locally as Pisang Marmi. The district government where the outbreak first started did take the necessary control measures. However, such control measures was taken too late after the disease had spread out throughout the district, allowing the disease to spread further East destroying bananas in the hree other districts. In addition, the participation of local farmers in controlling the disease was low because lack of information, limited available resources, and governance regime that far from collaborative, not too mention adaptive. Who finally suffered the most were small-scale farmers whose food and income depended heavily on bananas. The kept-spreading disease posed similar threats to farmer is nearby islands of Flores and Timor.