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Strengthening Family Farming Organization towards food sovereignty

(Agusdin pulungan, WAMTI/Indonesia Farmers and Fishers Society Organization,

Email: Wamti_indonesia@yahoo.com)

WORLD RURAL FORUM CONFERENCE “ THE FAMILY FARMING : FEEDING THE

WORLD, CARING FOR THE EARTH” BILBAO, SPAIN, OCTOBER 5, 2011.

Food plays an important role in the Indonesian economy where the largest part of the

population is food producers. Food also has a very big share in the cost of living as well as small

farmer’s income. And, families farmers are group of people whom most instrumental in

producing food as well as the largest food consumers.

More than half the countries of 245 million people living on agriculture are small family

farmers. For them, agriculture needs to be seen as a struggle to ensure the family to food.

From the food groups, rice is the most important food consumption and

production patterns of the Indonesian family farmers. In fact, total amount of poor people in

Indonesia is about 30, 02 million (12, 49% from the total population), 2011. In which 64, 7% of

them are small agriculture producers.

As a socio economic instrument, rural development could create the opportunities

economic development as well as improving the access to food for people. Unfortunately, the

support is still very limited. The situations like imbalance of resources distribution, limited

support for production facilities, uncertain climate challenges, limited attention of researches, are

all created constraints of family famers to sovereign from foods.

In the sense of producing foods, farmers in everydays live are still facing problems in

accessing high-quality seeds, fertilizers, water, and rural infrastructure. In the other hands, the

awareness that agriculture could benefit to provide food for family nutrition and health and the

knowledge about the relation between growing food practices, the yields and its nutrition to

health is still as another challenges.

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From a complexity environment, the demand and supply of food commodities become

fragile or instable, especially in its availability and pricing development. Look into the market

mechanism, the price fluctuation damage the farmers market as well as weaken the people

buying power. When the food prices fluctuated, it affects at large the income of small family

farmers and its access to food. And, the government import food policy also creates a distortion

on farmers market.

It is understandable that agriculture is complex to become stable. Because it does not take

place in an economic vacuum. It should be done in harmony with the natural environment,

facilitated by proper social context, availability of knowledge and skills, financial systems, the

market and trade system.

What is the Role of Farmer Organizations in Facing Food Crisis?

Farmer’s organization has a strategic role in determining and mobilizing the family and

community into food systems. In which, the resources could be wisely addressed to deal with the

people food sovereignty.

Farmers Institutionalization through the organization network would be effective in

improving the farmer’s insight and knowledge to address the problems of agricultural

production, collectively and with an ecological style.

How is youth in Agriculture?

The absent of youth in agriculture is a today’s problem of the global agriculture. We

usually in trap by the short term policy that may crated that agriculture is no longer attractive for

many young people.

That is why, agrarian reform become a necessary policy or program to be done in order to

give incentive to the youth to be able to work in agriculture with the future and or to improve the

family farmer economic of scale.

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What aspects should be considered in order to strengthen family farmers towards

caring food for people?

a. Problems of agriculture should be seen at a locality approaches ; how the actual ability of

rural communities in meeting the needs of foods for their nutrition and health and how to

contribute the food supply for other people, in accordance with

preferences and capabilities of the availability of the resources. To start improving the

food conditions of rural communities is only fitting if done with participatory manner and

well attention to socio cultural issues of local communities.

b. Organizing the farmers by food commodities that they produced (farmers group by

commodities). Where the function of the farmers Organization as a critical mass in the

rural development may create a model of partnerships to mobilize local resources

combining with other external resources in a sustainable manner.

c. To create participatory effective food planning and implementation in local level

integrate between farmers and government. And how in planning, the market not to be

put always at the first place but the needs of nutrition and health for the family farmers

and peoples should be given as a priority.

d. It is necessary to dig a new thinking policy of local food empowerment with

a multidimensional approach. The National and international food policy should be

directed to appreciate and support the local food culture and utilize the biodiversity as the

fundament in building the strong access of small family farmers to food.

e. In the years of drought, flood, hail or insect plague, its reserve to compensate the farmer

for his crop losses. Risk management facing the climate challenges as well as price

instability: could be reserved by applying crop insurance system. Thus, the farmer is

insured against the disasters and might possibly the people are insured against hunger.

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The last but not lease, to promote a campaign program in the national and global level to

raise awareness of the leaders to make agriculture to become a possible place for the choice

of the youth to become their future profession or promising job is a must. TOMORROWS

WORLD NEEDS THE YOUNG FARMERS

Thank you…