The Department of Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Indonesia, in collaboration with the Pandu Cendikia Foundation, implemented a Community Service program themed “Capacity Development for Superior Regional Products.”

The product was developed based on the concept of ethnobotany, a science that studies the use of plants by local communities. Therefore, the program, led by Afiatry, emphasized the use of plants around Sukarame Village as objects of economic value.

The program, themed “Developing an Ethnobotany Workshop as a Capacity Building Effort for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in Sukarame Village,” was chosen because Sukarame Village has a unique and strategic location, flanked by beaches and forests/mountains.

The community can find a variety of plants in the forest, which can then be processed into creative products that can be sold as souvenirs to beach visitors.

This community service program, supported by the Directorate of Research and Community Development (DRPM) of the University of Indonesia (UI), began with training on July 20, 2018, to introduce MSME financial management, create online stores, and develop skills in rope tying.

The trainings involved lecturers from the Department of Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Indonesia, and practitioners from the Pandu Cendekia Foundation: Afiatry Putrika, M.Sc., Dr. Retno Lestari, Putri Rahayu Ratri, M.Biomed., Merry Niarsi, M.Sc., and Amelia Said, M.Psi.T. The training aimed to improve basic knowledge in business management and enhance the skills and creativity of the Sukarame Village community.

According to Afiatry, Sukarame Village is strategically located because it is flanked by tourist centers, including beaches, forests, and waterfalls. He added that in addition to its strategic location, the village also boasts abundant natural resources, yet has a low economic activity. Lack of knowledge, educational background, and difficulty in opening wider market access are the main obstacles for the community in developing the village’s local potential. Yet, Sukarame Village boasts a variety of readily available natural resources, such as the resam plant, which can be used as a base material for accessories, and the jabon tree, whose wood can be used as a raw material for the wood industry.

Afiatry added that in this activity, the community was also introduced to skills, namely the basic techniques of rope tying art (macrame), pelatihan pengolahan limbah serbuk kayu, pelatihan pengolahan furniture dari kayu dan bambu.

The training aimed to provide village communities with alternative ways to create handicrafts that can be used as souvenirs to sell to tourists. If the resulting products are creative, they can increase the income of their SMEs.

The rope-tying art can then be applied using parts of plant stems, such as the resam fern or other plants abundant in the area. The use of resam stem fiber is expected to provide an alternative raw material for making various souvenirs.

Founder Fajar Reza Budiman, Head of the Pandu Cendikia Foundation, explained that this program was deemed necessary to optimize the use of Natural Resources (SDA). The program hopes to develop local potential by starting to equip village communities with the importance of developing Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).

Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) are groups that operate businesses based on the principles of togetherness, a democratic and transparent economy, independence, balanced progress, and sustainability. Fajar stated that one of the main pillars in establishing MSMEs is sound business management, such as orderly financial management and product marketing to the right points.

MSME financial management must be carried out routinely and in detail, for example by implementing an MSME bookkeeping system. Additionally, product marketing can be expanded through online buying and selling websites. online, considering that in today’s era technological sophistication has become rampant so that market opportunities are increasingly high and expanding.

The majority of the training participants were housewives. They appeared quite enthusiastic about this activity, as evidenced by the number of participants exceeding the target, from 30 to 40.

The participants hoped to further advance their product development. According to Endang Sutiyoso (Pak Eton), as a village development activist, this activity is expected to pave the way for the community to develop their small businesses, thereby improving the village’s standard of living. The abundant natural resource potential in Sukarame Village is also expected to be utilized sustainably by residents as raw materials for souvenirs, thereby ensuring their sustainability.

The output of this community service program is expected to increase the knowledge, creativity, and economic well-being of the Sukarame Village community. Equipped with knowledge and creativity, the village community is key to optimizing the utilization of local potential, thus ensuring the sustainable development of Sukarame Village’s MSMEs.