E-commerce in the Forests of Central Kalimantan

Kompas

Screenshot of RK Maladi\'s Reggae Kubung Youtube account

R.K. Maladi walked behind his house, a smartphone in hand. He sat under a tree with roots that were taller than him, taking photographs and videos of his surroundings.

Maladi took digital recordings of jengkol (Archidendron pauciflorum), durian, and kapul (tampoi; Baccaurea macrocarpa) trees, as well as a type of sapodilla tree that grow in the forest. He walked over to a durian fruit that had just fallen. "Hello everyone, back to Reggae Kubung, there are lots of durians here. Come on, come here," he said, speaking to the camera.

Maladi, nicknamed “Reggae Kubung”, is a resident of Kubung village in Lamandau regency, Central Kalimantan, around 616 kilometers from the provincial capital of Palangkaraya. The distance between the two is almost the same as the distance from Jakarta to Surabaya, East Java.

Also read:

> A Story of Loyalty to the Forest

> Our Fruits Become Our Identity

Even though the village has no internet access, Maladi was enthusiastic about shooting a video of his “products”. He has to go to the center of Delang district, around 19 km away, to edit and upload his videos.

With the help of his son, his videos are carefully edited to make them more interesting before they are uploaded to the REGGAE KUBUNG YouTube channel. Aside from Delang, the nearest area which has internet access is Nanga Tayap in West Kalimantan, 20-25 km away.

The village of Kubung, which is home to around 250 families, is located in the middle of a forest where durian, jengkol, and other perennial trees grow. Not many people know about the area.

KOMPAS/DIONISIUS REYNALDO TRIWIBOWO

Traders come to Kubung Village, Lamandau Regency, Central Kalimantan to buy ripe durians from local residents on (26/06/2021). Durian is one of the products or non-timber forest products of the Dayak Tomun people in Central Kalimantan.

Maladi learned how to make video logs, or vlogs, from members of Paradise Soldier, a Jakarta-based music group led by Rival Himran and Estu Pradana. They made a song and music video with Maladi about the beauty of the last jungle in Lamandau. He began his vlog after the middlemen who usually visited the village to buy durian and jengkol disappeared because of the Covid-19 pandemic. With his vlogs, most of which are uploaded to YouTube, Maladi has created an opportunity to promote forest products and the beauty of his village, which has ecotourism potential.

"So [I] not only promote durian and honey, but also invite people to come here. Get [some] peace, see the authenticity of the lives of the Dayak people," he said on Sunday (3/10/2021).

The content of Maladi\'s vlogs vary, ranging from forest commodities to children going to the forest to harvest fruit or to hunt, and to the charming green landscape. He also promotes Kubung’s forest products on other social media platforms.

Also read:

> Nonintegrated Fruit Farms Pose Obstacle

> New Era for Banana Farmers in Tanggamus

Maladi is not the only one attempting this venture. Rudianto (44) from Didi village in East Dusun Timur district, East Barito Regency, Central Kalimantan, with the help of his nephew, has also opened a Facebook account for his business. Since early 2021 he has uploaded a series of videos on the bananas and durians he harvested from his garden to his Facebook account.

At first, the comments on his vlogs only came from relatives. Today, Rudianto sells 20-30 banana bunches and dozens of durians a day. “During the pandemic, durian has been difficult to sell. That\'s why I was told to use Facebook," he said. He now earns an additional daily income of between Rp 70,000 and 100,000 from his online business.

Local nongovernmental organization Justice, Peace, and Integrity Creation (JPIC) supports such activities. The NGO recently started a community of small businesses called Lewu Anthony to help promote the creative economy in remote Kalimantan.

KOMPAS/DIONISIUS REYNALDO TRIWIBOWO

A resident of Kubung Village shows forest fruit such as mangoes that grow wild in the forest in his village, Lamandau Regency, Central Kalimantan in early 2019.

JPIC Kalimantan director Frans Sani Lake said that Lewu Anthony was established to promote and market local products. He then set up an online shop to sell them.

"This is a group of craftswomen, enthusiastic farmers, as well as creative young people, and (the results) of their hard work can now be enjoyed by the wider public," said Frans.

“Lewu” in the Ngaju Dayak language means village or community house. The name Anthony was taken from the Saint Anthony Padova Halfway House, a well-known social rehabilitation shelter. Frans uses Instagram, Facebook, and Tokopedia to sell local products such as vegetables, honey, traditional foods and handicrafts.

The breakthroughs made by Maladi and Rudianto are expected to drive local self-empowerment so the people will grow more prosperous while protecting nature.

The spirit of Maladi, Rudianto, and Frans reflects the rise of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Central Kalimantan during the pandemic. The head of the Central Kalimantan Cooperatives and MSME Office, Ati Mulyati, said there were around 40,000 MSMEs in Central Kalimantan in December 2019. By 2020, their number increased sharply to 70,422 MSMEs, partly because of increased layoffs at companies, hotels, and other business sectors.

Together with Bank Indonesia, the office established an e-commerce platform called Shopping Kalteng (Central Kalimantan) to help small businesses sell their products and services. Ati said that the food and handicraft businesses had become an alternative economic sector for the local people, so they no longer relied on the mining and plantation sectors.

Furthermore, the breakthroughs made by Maladi and Rudianto are expected to drive local self-empowerment so the people will grow more prosperous while protecting nature.

This article was translated by Hendarsyah Tarmizi.