NTT (part 1)
(Baca Versi Bahasa Indonesia)
Water and Sanitation and Food Security Department were conducting assessment on Nusa Tenggara Timur (NTT) on Jan/Feb 2007. The assessment result can be summarized as follow.
General Overview of the Area Assessed
The total population in TTS is 420,798 people or 98,202 households; while the population of Alor is 174,608 people or 39,228 households. Population density is quite low in both districts i.e. 102 inhabitants per km² in TTS and 60 inhabitants per km in Alor.
The population of NTT province is composed by many tribes, each tribe having a specific language and culture. The majority of the TTS and Alor population is of Christian obedience. Religious leaders also play a major role within communities. Traditional and religious leaders are central stakeholders of the community, in addition of the local officials. Collision of interests among those leaders may disharmonize communities and hinder community mobilization.
The topography of both districts assessed, either in Timor Tengah Selatan (TTS) or Alor, is characterized by steep hillsides and narrow coastal plain. About 30% of the area present slope of more than 40° gradient. These conditions constraint agricultural activities, economic development, and more generally access. NTT is largely prone to natural disasters:
- Drought
- Landslide, strong winds, floods and flash-floods
- Earthquake occurred in Alor in 2004
- Pest
In TTS, most of the roads between villages are made with asphalt, and, even if they are poorly maintained, access is possible all year round. Nevertheless, the assessment team identified a few villages which could not be accessed by car. Cost of public transport is high according to local standards but still affordable.
In Alor, apart from one or two roads linking Kalabahi to few other main towns, road conditions are terrible. Most of roads between villages are not asphalted, and consist in clayey tracks, often very steep, which make access to many rural villages very difficult, dangerous and even impossible in rainy season. The whole southern coast is not accessible at all by car, only by boat for the villages located right on the coast, while inland villages are accessible only through several hours of difficult walk from the shore. Cost of public transportation is extremely high.
In TTS, the villages visited were systematically covered by a basic electrical network, supply electricity only by night. In Alor, most villages visited did not have any public electricity supply, apart from the sub-district capitals. On the other hand, numerous villages visited had been covered by a massive distribution of household solar panels by a local NGO in 2004, which had a highly positive impact.
At least one elementary school can be found in each village, but this good coverage should be balanced by the questionable quality of the education provided. On the contrary, higher education establishments are quite limited within rural sub-districts and mainly found in the sub-districts’ capital. Access to higher education is therefore hindered by income and distance constraints.
The usual catchments area of traditional markets covers between 2 to 4 villages. In addition to markets, some kiosks or small shops can be found at village level selling basic items and buying cash crops.
Generally, the main constraints for market development in Alor and TTS are limited number of traders and buyers, low buying capacities from the villagers due to low income, and topographic constraints. In addition, limited market channels makes products commercialization, either agriculture production or handicrafts (weaving), more difficult.
NUTRITION AND FOOD SECURITY
ACCESS TO WATER
RECOMMENDATION
PICTURES
Writer : FoodSec and Watsan Departmen
Editor : Erma Maghfiroh
Translator : Erma Maghfiroh
