NONGKOJAJAR, East Java (ILO News) – Bambang Sujono’s guesthouse is fully booked, again. Recently, his five-room homestay has often been too small for the number of tourists now storming into Nongkojajar, a small town in East Java, Indonesia. The once quiet streets have become busy with an increasing flow of visitors. Coffee shops, restaurants, handicraft stores and guesthouses are springing up like mushrooms.
“I’m now planning to build three more rooms,” said the 51-year-old dairy worker. He, his 46-year-old wife Titin Purnamawati and two children enjoy welcoming tourists to their traditional Kampoeng’ house.
Just four years ago Nongkojajar was invisible on the Indonesian tourism map. Some people said that compared with the nearby famous volcano, Mount Bromo, the rivers and mountains in Nongkojajar had little to offer. But the local community, with help of the ILO, has proved that tourism can be based on much more than just natural beauty.
ILO bringing JOY
With the aim of reducing poverty in Nongkojajar and creating employment, especially for young people, the ILO developed the Job Opportunity for Youth Employment (JOY) Project in 2009, with the support of the Government of the Netherlands. Tourism was one of the project’s priority areas.
After extensive field studies, the ILO designed a package to boost the local tourism industry. As well as activities such as river tubing adventures, the project introduced a community-based tourism that was in line with the local government’s idea to turn Nongkojajar into an “educational agrotourism” centre. This allowed tourists to go to local farms, pick the fresh fruits and learn about farming.
Since then, the Nongkojajar Tourism Information Centre – which receives funding from the ILO – has successfully organized domestic and overseas tour groups to visit the fruit farms. The cost is 25,000 Indonesian Rupiah (about USD 2) per person and the visitors can pick as much fruit as they want.
The educational side is also proving to be a success. Recently, a group of 65 students from a senior high school in Surabaya, the capital of East Java, stayed for a three-day study visit to learn about dairy farming, agricultural activities and biogas systems.
Biogas experts
Nongkojajar’s expertise in biogas production is another component of the JOY project. As well as boosting tourism, the project also introduced the local community to alternative energy production by creating a collaboration between the SNV Biogas Project of the Netherlands and the Cooperative Setia Kawan, the largest dairy cooperative in Pasuruan District. After receiving technical training and financial support from the SNV, more than 16,000 dairy farmers from the cooperative built around 1,300 biogas domes and are still building new ones.
This is the key to all the ILO support and initiatives, ownership and sustainability."
Peter van Rooij, Country Director of the ILO in Indonesia
The ILO also organized training for local people in business-related skills. Those trained included potential tour guides, souvenir makers and guesthouse owners – including Sujono. Before learning about the idea of homestays, he and his neighbours had never thought of generating more income by turning their houses into guesthouses. Now 25 households are involved in the scheme, providing tourists with places to stay.
A crucial element of the JOY approach was to lay a solid foundation for the future development of Nongkojajar that went beyond the life span of the project itself. It did this by bringing together all the social partners – representatives of government, workers’ and employers’ organizations -- to set up the Local Economic Development (LED) Forum. By organizing training sessions, workshops and seminars, the ILO helped build mutual trust between the government, the private sector and civil society. Consequently, after the JOY project formally ended in 2010, the LED Forum was able to continue working effectively.
“This is the key to all the ILO support and initiatives, ownership and sustainability,” said Peter van Rooij, Country Director of the ILO in Indonesia. “I really appreciate the efforts made by the local government and people of Nongkojajar to continue exploring and developing its tourism and agricultural potential.”
