The Maturity of PKBL for Indonesian Agriculture
PT. Pertamina drips the fund of Rp 1 trillion through the Partnership Program and Community Development (PKBL) for small businesses, says President Commissioner of PT. Pertamina, Sugiharto as a guest speaker in a talk show titled the Role of PKBL for Agribusiness in Agrinex Expo of 2012, held at Jakarta Convention Center, (31/3).
Further he said, the program is a mandatory program for a state-owned enterprise. This year there is about Rp 14 trillion from the entire state-owned enterprises. The Partnership Program under the assistantship of PT. Pertamina is prioritized for small businesses with a net worth of at least Rp. 200 million. If a business has not met this criterion, it can participate in the program of environmental development program. In this program, such a business is assisted for further development and it is feasible in term of its net asset, it can take part in the Partnership Program
The PKBL program of PT. Pertamina operates from the net profit of the company. Its distribution must go through a selection process, field surveys and so on. The Program is largely engaged in agribusinesses from upstream to downstream as the majority (70%) of Indonesian population are hereditarily doing businesses farming. The partners currently assisted by Pertamina through PKBL program are 46 717 small businesses.
A similar case is expressed by Harmon Yero, Senior Partnership Manager of PT.TELKOM. He says PT. Telecommunications helps farmers grow and advance in terms of Information and Communication Technology (ICT). It is expected that with the introduction of ICT program to farmers, they can monitor the prices of peppers, onions, etc. in the market trend. "In addition, Indonesia consists of many islands, so ICT is necessary," he said.
The information technology-based PKBL of PT.TELKOM is based on the research finding that the lack of information is one of the constraints for farmers. PT. Telkom seeks to make information and agricultural products available. The ICT-based program has been practiced in Tanah Karo Regency. "Head of the Regency is very supportive," he further added.
Also he said, the existence of the program is of great help to farmers so that they are not misinformed of the market price. This program is expected to secure the growth of farmers’ businesses and optimize the market condition.
In addition to PT. Pertamina and PT.TELKOM, PT. SASCO is also implementing the PKBL program according to Nicholas, a representative of PT.SASCO. This fertilizer company is in collaboration with ICMI in the form of Go Green Project. Through the program, PT. Sasco with ICMI will teach farmers how to grow rice properly, how to plant properly, how to fertilize the soil by putting microbes into the soil with good fertilizer so that farmers will produce more abundant crops.
Responding to the suggestion of an IPB’s student for a synergy of the three companies to develop agriculture, Sugiharto of PT. Pertamina said that there is actually such cooperation. Likewise, ICMI is empowering people with E-learning at the mosques. "Departing from the mosque, it is expected to achieve e-health, e-market, e-public, and commercial Go Green. (Mtd)
