09 June 2022
The Halmahera Persada Lygend (HPL) office area appears to be crowded ahead of iftar. After work, employees congregate in a corner where various culinary delights are sold. They wanted to buy takjil dishes made by Kawasi Village residents, which the Harita Nickel Community Development (Comdev) team accepted to jointly realize the Takjil Festival program in 2022.
The Takjil Festival lasts the entire month of Ramadan. This activity involved a total of 120 residents, all of whom were female. They make grilled fish, lalampa, grilled bananas, risoles, and panadas, as well as drinks like es syrup and es campur. Takjil Festival is one of Harita Nickel's economic development and empowerment programs aimed at improving the well-being of Kawasi Village residents.
According to Riyadi Supriadi, manager of Comdev, this program has a direct impact on improving the people's economy. "Through this Takjil Festival program, we were able to generate an additional income of up to Rp. 17 million per group." Furthermore, there are many innovations and additions to the types of food sold at this festival," he said.
The Takjil Festival is more than just a culinary event. During this festival, the Comdev team also teaches residents about hygienic culinary preparation and basic marketing management. As a result, residents gain more experience running MSME businesses in the culinary field. This demonstrates Harita Nickel's dedication to achieving long-term empowerment.
According to Riyadi, the assistance is expected to increase residents' income through quality products. "The main challenge for traders is good and correct product packaging. "The way to overcome this is to socialize the relevant traders and assist them in performing packaging following predetermined standards," he explained.
Due to access restrictions caused by the pandemic, residents are unable to sell their products directly in the Obi Site area at this Takjil Festival. Residents in the village work with the Comdev team to create culinary products. Following that, the Comdev team will assist in marketing the villagers' processed products to employees in the site area. However, compared to last year's Takjil Festival, the number of residents participating and the resulting turnover have increased.
The Takjil Festival 2021 had 80 attendees. This year, 120 people took part, a 40-person increase. It is also directly proportional to an increase in employee demand, according to Riyadi. "The demand is extremely high. This program has aided in providing culinary dishes for employees so that they do not have to travel to the village for snacks "Riyadi stated.
Employees looking for takjil menus simply go to the points of sale listed on the Obi Site. The various snacks can be found in front of HPL's old office, Nirwana Trimegah Bangun Persada (TBP) area, as well as Yudistria's dorm and offices, Halmahera Jaya Feronickel (HJF). At each location, HARITA personnel from the Comdev team and several other colleagues are ready to assist buyers.
Suryani Jamardin Jouronga, a resident and one of the Takjil Festival group's coordinators, admitted that this program was extremely beneficial. According to him, Comdev's assistance was extremely beneficial to the residents. This program has the potential to increase residents' production capacity and real income in the MSME culinary business.
"The Comdev team offered to aid our sales by assisting us with food preparation, packaging, and marketing. As a result, our products become sanitary and more appealing. Furthermore, income has increased." Suryani explained.
She also stated that this year's Takjil Festival had piqued the interest of more people than the previous year. According to him, more and more residents are interested in participating because they saw the benefits of last year's activities. The Takjil Festival, organized by Harita Nickel, provides a large market opportunity for the women of Kawasi Village to feel confident in producing a variety of culinary products for breaking the fast.
Go Top