The sun rises on the eastern horizon, casting a reddish hue across the morning sky. At the Harita Nickel mining site on Obi Island, South Halmahera, a bespectacled woman emerges from the PT Megah Surya Pertiwi (MSP) mess area. Dressed in a neat uniform, her eyes gaze up at the morning sky, full of hope that her activities today will contribute to a lasting legacy.
Her name is Windy Ashari. She is a key figure behind the empowerment of village communities, located near the Harita Nickel mine and operating in the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises sector (MSME). Working through a mentoring program she and her colleagues have implemented, Windy plays a crucial role in helping communities here become more economically independent.
Born in Banyuwangi on October 30, 1993, Ashari has been pursuing her career at Harita Nickel since September 2019. She currently serves as the Small & Medium Enterprise Foreman in the Community Development Department. One of her duties is to participate in the company's Community Empowerment and Development (PPM) program.
For Windy, working at Harita Nickel is a source of pride. Moreover, as a woman, she is proud to support the empowerment of other women in her village. She has long been interested in community service; throughout her career, she has been learning new ways help develop the potential of local residents.
Windy, who is also an avid reader, has long desired a job outside her native Java. It's no surprise that Windy feels so comfortable devoting herself to her career on Obi Island – she believes that working outside Java has provided her with numerous lessons and insights into culture and diversity.
Mentoring Generates Turnover in the Hundreds of Millions
Windy is rightly proud of her hard work in mentoring, which has already delivered tangible results. In Kawasi Village, the mentoring of MSMEs has boosted the income of local residents.
Through banana chips, for example, the company generates a monthly turnover of IDR 15-20 million. Furthermore, Windy explains that the company also has a minimarket, called Hopmart, which helps distribute Kawasi Village MSME products to employees. Its turnover alone can reach IDR 170-200 million per month.
There's also Nyala Cafe, a favorite hangout spot for Harita Nickel employees, managed by MSMEs and comprised of women in Kawasi Village. Nyala Cafe's monthly turnover can reach IDR 15-20 million. This revenue has undoubtedly helped many residents financially, as a direct result of the company's presence.
Several Harita Nickel-assisted MSMEs now even employ employees, thus contributing not only to the economy but also to the creation of jobs for the village residents.
Windy's enthusiasm is growing. Her hard work in mentoring has not been in vain. Furthermore, she hopes that the various efforts she has undertaken with the Harita Nickel Community Development team can become sustainable programs in the future.
"Our hope is that in the future, residents can continue to develop their local potential even after the company is no longer operating," says Windy. She also hopes that the company's programs will contribute to the advancement of entrepreneurship and encourage residents to build broader business networks. In addition, Windy also hopes that residents living around the mine will become role models for the entire community on Obi Island.
Utilize local potential around the mine
According to Windy, community development is rooted in local potential, which can then be harnessed and turned into economic value. In Kawasi Village, where Harita Nickel operates, for example, bananas are a local resource that has not been widely utilized by residents.
Through the Community Development program, bananas in Kawasi Village are transformed into chips, which are then distributed to the company. This has been proven to support financial independence for housewives in Kawasi, with at least a dozen women benefiting from this banana chip production mentoring program.
In addition to Kawasi Village, Windy and the Community Development team are also working on women's economic empowerment in other villages. For example, Soligi Village is utilizing soybeans as a local resource to increase their economic value. This is thanks to Soligi's relatively fertile soil, which is suitable for soybean cultivation; and the company's demand for end-products like tofu and tempeh, which is also quite high.
Windy saw this as a golden opportunity to empower women in Soligi Village, who have been trained in planting and cultivation techniques for tofu and tempeh. Through this mentoring approach, Windy and the Harita Nickel Community Development team have successfully helped many housewives become more financially independent.
Although Windy loves her current profession, she admits that she occasionally encounters challenges and obstacles. One of these is the remote location of Obi Island, which makes distribution of goods quite difficult. This often takes time and even results in product quality deteriorating due to the long journey.
Nevertheless, thanks to the presence of a company with thousands of employees, distribution of local products has become easier. All products produced by residents can be distributed directly to the company, in line with established quality standards.