IPB University Signs MoU with Aceh Jaya and Sigi District Governments, Pursuing Zero Percent of Extreme Poverty
IPB University signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the District Government (Pemkab) of Aceh Jaya and the District Government of Sigi. The signing of the MoU was carried out by each regional head, namely the Regent (Pj) of Aceh Jaya, Dr Nurdin, Regent of Sigi, Mohamad Irwan MSi and Rector of IPB University, Prof Arif Satria. The signing ceremony was held at the IPB International Convention Center, Bogor, (5/5).
Through this collaboration, Dr Nurdin expressed his desire to overcome extreme poverty in Aceh Jaya which is still considered high, at 19 percent. He targets, in 2024 poverty can disappear in Aceh Jaya at the cost of a minimal Regional Budget (APBD).
“Our people are mostly farmers. The Aceh Jaya region has 22 hectares of community oil palm, but poverty is still 19 percent. For that, we have to collaborate a lot so that the potential can be encouraged,” he said.
Dr Nurdin further revealed that Aceh Jaya’s potential is diverse. Among other things, it is rich in protected animals such as tigers, elephants, crocodiles, turtles and wedge sharks. In this district there are also a number of conservation areas such as turtles, coral reefs and a large mangrove area. It also has production forests and protected forests.
“We have also made the first step by redistributing 20 thousand hectares of land to the community with each family head 2,002 hectares. In addition, there are 48 thousand hectares of production forests handed over by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK) for joint village-owned businesses,” he said.
Therefore, his party needs support, especially IPB University in order to become an economic driver for the community to teach zero percent extreme poverty. He hopes that the potential in Aceh Jaya can answer the needs of the community economically. Including a supply chain network from upstream to downstream, so that the products can reach the community.
“We hope IPB University can help in terms of utilizing wildlife, how to utilize conservation areas to bring good to the community. We often say that successful conservation must be community-based, which brings prosperity to the community. We hope that there will be support from expertise at IPB University, both in the scientific field and networking,” added Dr Nurdin.
Meanwhile, Mohamad Irwan, MSi, Regent of Sigi conveyed his desire to strengthen human resource education (HR) at IPB University. This cooperation is expected to be an investment in human resources and can strengthen the Sigi Regional Government.
In addition, he greatly appreciated the livestock strengthening program conducted with IPB University in his region. In this case, the Sigi Regency Government has collaborated for four years through the School of People’s Animal Husbandry (SPR). Initially only one sub-district, it has now grown to three sub-districts.
“For almost five years now, we have been collaborating with IPB on SPR, where people did not know how to manage livestock into economic value. Alhamdulillah, now it has developed into three sub-districts,” said Irwan.
Related to this collaboration, Rector of IPB University, Prof Arif Satria admitted that he was happy because several IPB University programs have now entered various regions.
“IPB University is present in the regions, giving legitimacy to the programs developed by the regents, especially to provide guarantees for livestock programs. IPB University innovations will always continue to be applied in various regions in Indonesia, including in Sigi and Aceh Jaya,” he concluded. (dh/Rz) (IAAS/RUM)
