PALMOILMAGAZINE, ROHUL – Eighty-one smallholders participated in a technical training program on palm oil cultivation through the Palm Oil Plantation Human Resource Development Program. The event took place at Hotel Grand Elite in Pekanbaru, Riau Province, and was supported by the Palm Oil Plantation Fund Management Agency (PFMA) with financial backing for 2023.
The training was officially inaugurated by Syahrial Abdi, Head of the Riau Province Plantation Agency. The event was attended by Eva Lizarmi SP, Chairman of the Secretariat Team for Human Resource Development in the Palm Oil Plantation Sector (PSDMPKS), the head of the Siak Plantation and Livestock Agency, and leaders and coordinators of various village cooperative units (KUD).
In his speech, CH Agung Nugroho, Head of the Plantation and Livestock Agency for Rokan Hulu (Rohul) Regency, highlighted that the training included participants from five institutions. These were: KUD Bangkit Usaha Makmur in Village of Bencah Kesuma, Sub district of Kabun that reached 33 men; KUD Bangkit Usaha Makmur in Village of Bukit Intan Makmur, Sub district of Kunto Darussalam that reached 13 men; KUD Tujuh Permata in Village of Bagan Tujuh, Sub district of Kunto Darussalam that reached 6 men; Forum Petani Sawit Swadaya Semarak Mudo in Village of Tandun, Sub district of Tandun that reached 2 men; and Forum Petani Sawit Swadaya Tayo Barokah in Village of Tapung Jaya and Dayo, Sub district of Tandun that reached 27 men.
“It is hoped the training would escalate their knowledge and skills to increase their plantation production which eventually would escalate their welfare,” Agung said, as Palmoilmagazine.com quoted from SegmenNews, Tuesday, 14 May 2024.
In fact, PSDMPKS in Regency of Rohul was firstly conducted in 2023 with the fund supports from PFMA. The regency was laid on about 722,978 hectares and about 423,160 hectares were palm oil plantations (plantation data of Regency of Rohul – WRI Indonesia).
The smallholders’ groups until 2021 reached about 2.532 groups (data of sistem informasi management penyuluhan pertainain (Simluhtan) of Horticulture and Food Plant Agency, 2021). The economy in Regency of Rokan Hulu has something to do with fresh fruit bunch (FFB) price and other plantation commodities.
Even though it significantly has wide palm oil plantations, the production is not optimal yet. Some challenges that the planters face, are, the lack of capital to cultivate land, the lack of knowledge about cultivation technic, the planting of fake/uncertified seeds, and the low buying capability, and infrastructures.
To solve such issus, Agung continued that his agency would keep searching for other source of income, such as, national budget, provincial budget, regency budget, or from PFMA. Besides, it is hoped that the companies would keep delivering helps for the people around.
“To minimize the issues, we, as the institution that has authority would keep searching for funds in the form of national, regional, and agency budget and from PFMA. We would suggest that the companies should take care of the people around, try to help the people in physical and non-physical forms to realize the same welfare,” he said. (T2)
