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| The Government of Tabanan Regency held a coordination meeting with the team from UMM. (Photo: Istimewa) |
To preserve Bali's Subak cultural heritage, the Government of Tabanan Regency collaborates with the University of Muhammadiyah Malang (UMM) to develop it. The White Campus — the alias of UMM — has even delegated a survey team to strengthen sustainable Subak management to Tabanan on May 7-13. Subak is well-known as a forum for farmers to regulate Bali's agricultural irrigation management system.
Balinese believes that without the intervention of Subak, the nursery system, and agricultural products won't be optimal. Interestingly, Subak, which has existed since the 9th century, was acknowledged by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on June 29, 2021.
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Unfortunately, the role of Subak continues to diminish due to global influences, so agriculture and irrigation governance often receive less attention. "Then, UMM and the Government of Tabanan Regency collaborate to reconstruct the existing Subak. Primarily, agriculture is one of the top commodities of Tabanan Regency, Bali," said the Regent of Tabanan 1, Komang Sanjaya.
He felt delighted and appreciated the discussion with UMM experts. His team even gets ready to establish other cooperation affairs, not only in agriculture but also in other strategic sectors.
So far, UMM, through the program of Professor of Community Development Activist (Trans.: Profesor Penggerak Pembangunan Masyarakat (P3M) has worked closely with several Regional Heads, notably significantly improving the community's welfare. For example, the collaboration of UMM with the Regency Government of Bondowoso, led by Prof. Dr. Ir. Indah Prihartini, MP, has successfully assisted traditional rice farmer groups, who are now switching to organic farming. Until now, more than 164 hectares of rice fields have been certified for organic agriculture.
Besides the example, two sectors were developed by UMM alongside the Regency Government of Jember. The first one was food self-sufficiency through organic farming cultivation programs. In contrast, the second sector was energy self-sufficiency in the form of the construction of micro-hydro and solar power plants. Similar things have also been applied in many regions, both districts and cities.
Interviewed separately, Dr. Fauzan, M. Pd., the Rector of UMM, explains that UMM must be a problem-solver institution for occurring problems in society. It's inseparable from the reality that UMM is essential for social contribution.
"It's mandatory for UMM to offer solutions for community issues. There is no reason for UMM not to contribute to improving the community's welfare," said he.
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Furthermore, Fauzan said that thinking quickly and acting anticipatively are required in the fast-paced era. Therefore, UMM has also run the Center of Excellence (CoE) program to eradicate unemployment issues in Indonesia and develop real sectors, like food, energy, education, social, etc. The White Campus also has the P3M program involving lecturers with adequate skills and expertise. (imh/wil)
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