Background to our Work

Manggarai Raya in West Flores, Indonesia (with about 782'000 population in 3 districts: Manggarai Barat, Manggarai and Manggarai Timur) remains one of poorest areas in the province of NTT; whereas NTT is one of the poorest provinces in Indonesia. The per capita income was IDR 7.56 Mio in 2013 (the national figure is IDR 42.4 Mio. In 2017, about 21% of the population of Manggarai is categorized as poor.. According to The Human Development Index NTT is ranked at 31 out of 33 provinces (WFP, 2013).

Recent government data show that as much as about 50% of people in Manggarai do not complete elementary school, which certainly contributes to the present poverty figures, i.e. low living standards and increasing poverty rates. Employment opportunities in the area are very few, those who do not complete elementary school find themselves earning a living from agriculture. This corresponds to the situation that more than 75% of the people work as farmers, many of them untrained, unskilled and unmotivated. Farming productivity is very low, regardless of the generally high fertility of the Manggarai soil. The population growth rate is high (1.9%), which raises particular concern on the environment. The forest cover is being depleted very fast, resulting in landslides in the rainy season and long drought seasons.

The school drop-out rate is high, only about 0.7% of the population goes to university. Many young people leave the region for Malaysia as immigrant workers. Stories and news on this subject prove that this practice has caused more problems than solutions. Those with better education tend to leave their villages for urban areas like Ruteng, Kupang or Bali and Java, and prefer paid and guaranteed employment as government officials or in private enterprises. Because of this brain-drain, most villages lack in educated human resources and remain managed by those who do not have enough education or exposure.

The state of education has also contributed to poor health conditions. Malnutrition among children and pregnancy are common in many parts of Manggarai. Through trainings and extension encounters, it was found that efforts to increase people’s awareness on basic matters like nutrition, hygiene and sanitation have not been given serious and systematic attention. Many families in rural areas do not use safe latrines.

Health care in the region of Manggarai relies on a mixture of traditional medicine and government sponsored health clinics. Access to such facilities is much affected by the level of mobility. As a result of isolation, many people rely on traditional health practitioners, even for emergency cases. Due to poor sanitation and nutrition, percentage of people living with disability in Manggarai is high. The 2013 survey of Health Ministry of the Republic of Indonesia founded that 58% of under-five-year age children have stunting problem.

Villages in this region are predominantly rural, agriculture based economies, with limited access to goods and services. A typical village in the area may be located several kilometers away from the nearest market. Road conditions are fairly good on the main roads, but quickly deteriorate as one moves inland, causing poor accessibility for many villages. Farmers are not motivated to maximize land use, i.e. by cultivating cash crops, because they cannot easily have their products transported to the market. A recent study by the World Bank shows that of the 1500 km of kabupaten roads in Manggarai, 67 percent need repairs. Travel within and out of villages in the area outside the city often requires a 4-wheel drive vehicle.

In Manggarai, during the dry season (October until March) most farming activities become very difficult. It is not surprising that one of the main problems people in the rural areas of Flores face, is water shortage. Many do not have sufficient water or water infrastructure to irrigate land during the dry season. Providing a secure livelihood for these rural communities has become greatly dependent on the duration and amount of rainfalls during the rainy season.

How we work

Ayo Indonesia runs an office in Ruteng, with 20 staff at village level and 5 at the office.

At village level, the NGO facilitates various trainings for farmers and provides necessary engineering skills. Its projects are funded by several international NGOs. For projects on empowering people living with disability, the NGO also receives donation from individuals for medical treatment.

It promotes local participation of each project, and respects principal values such as equality, non-discrimination, non-partisan attitude, transparency and democracy.

The contact details

Ayo Indonesia Foundation

Kotak Pos 149

Rangkat RT022/RW006, Kelurahan Watu

Ruteng 86500, Flores, NTT – Indonesia

Telephone: ++62 385 24 24 038

Mobile: ++852 530 86 382

ayo2indonesia@gmail.com

info@ayo-indonesia.org

Webiste: www.ayo-indonesia.org