On January 26, 2023, the participants of the Community-Led Innovation Partnership (CLIP) [1] Annual Workshop paid a visit to Giriasih Village in the sub-district of Purwosari, Gunungkidul, in the Province of Yogyakarta. They directly observed the agricultural land plots in the Ngoro-oro Sub-village where the Smart Mist Irrigation Innovation [2] was installed.
The activity saw not less than 90 people come from various organizations and government institutions. There were Ngudi Mulya farmers, the secretary of the Purwosari Sub-district, representatives of Purwosari Agricultural Advising Agency, the head of Gunungkidul Food and Agriculture Agency, and the village leader of Giriasih. Representatives from CLIP partners from a number of organizations from six countries were also keen to participate in this event.
These organizations included: YAKKUM Emergency Unit (YEU) from Indonesia, Elrha from the United Kingdom, and the Asian Disaster Reduction & Response Network (ADRRN) from Japan. The Center for Disaster Preparedness (CDP) from the Philippines, the Association of Community Health Services (ASECSA) from Guatemala, the Sustainable Environment and Ecological Development Society (SEEDS) from India, as well as the Start Network also sent their representatives for this visit.
Suwitono, the Giriasih village head, explained that his administration fully supported the development of Smart Mist Irrigation, an innovation pioneered and developed by the Ngudi Mulya Farmers’ Group. The Smart Mist Irrigation innovation is expected to provide easier access for farmers, especially the elderly and persons with disabilities.
Those who initially experienced difficulties in their agricultural work can now enjoy the technological advancement in farming. It also gives hope to the community that the millennial generation, the youths who were born in the year 1981 up to 1996, get more interested in agricultural work by making use of such technological development.
Aside from easier access to farming, the Giriasih village government also hoped that this Smart Mist Irrigation innovation can also increase food security in the area, taking into account the ever-increasing food prices in the market. The government is eager to see more development coming from agriculture following the technological advancements of this era. Thus, the young people, the millennials, may grow their interests in good ways.
Read also other article coverage for this event:
YEU Hosts International Partners in CLIP Annual Workshop 2023
Cross-country learnings for local innovation improvements
Written by: Sunarti, Riski Purnamawati, and Dwi Wahyudi [3]
Edited by: Lorenzo Fellycyano
1 The Community-Led Innovation Partnership (CLIP) supports the emergence and development of locally-driven solutions to humanitarian problems in the Democratic Republic of Congo (deferred), Guatemala, Indonesia, and the Philippines. YAKKUM Emergency Unit (YEU) runs the IDEAKSI program (short for Idea, Innovation, Action, and Inclusion) as its CLIP project in Indonesia. As part of the partnership, IDEAKSI seeks to find innovative and inclusive solutions to disaster management for most-at-risk groups, including persons with disabilities and the elderly.
Through the support provided by Elrha, Start Network, the Asia Disaster Reduction and Response Network (ADRRN) Tokyo Innovation Hub, and funding by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office (FCDO), YEU is able to organize IDEAKSI as its CLIP project in Indonesia.
2 The smart mist irrigation is an agricultural innovation developed by Ngudi Mulya Farmers’ Group, one of IDEAKSI innovator teams. It waters the groups’ land plots with up to 60% less water in its water-scarce local context of Gunungkidul, Yogyakarta. The ‘smart’ development of this system makes water scheduling a breeze with automatic spray activation via a mobile app, without having to be physically present at the site.
3 The three writers represent the younger generation in the village and who are expected to pick up the baton of Ngudi Mulya’s innovation, some of them were also participants of IDEAKSI’s community reporting and journalistic training.
Source: Yakkum Emergency Unit