NU, Santri and People-Oriented Economy
The efforts to realize economic independence by establishing an autonomous and professional business entity with good governance for the santri and intellectuals at that time was a very creative and innovative idea.
Didie SW
"O intelligent young men of the nation and noble ustads, why don't you establish an operational economic enterprise, where in each city there is an autonomous business entity?" -- KH Hasyim Asy'ari
Such a call was the spirit and ethos of the populist economy of the santri (students at Islamic boarding school) initiated by KH Hasyim Asy'ari at that time.
Nahdlatut Tujjar (NT) is an organization of businessmen formed in 1918, which is also a community of students and intellectuals engaged in the economic field. Meanwhile, in the fields of politics and education, Nahdlatul Wathan (NW) was created in 1922. This was followed by an organization in the field of studies titled Tashwirul Afkar (TA) in 1924. These are the three organizations that led to the establishment of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) in 1926.
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When viewed from its historic background, NT emerged externally because of the penetration of the Dutch colonial economy, and internally because of the competition between business groups in modernist Islamic circles, such as Al-Irsyad and Persis.
This initiative was able to stem the economic power of the hegemonic Dutch colonialists at that time.
What KH Hasyim called for at that time was a program for empowering the people’s economy and the independence of the region using the human resources (HR) they already had. The efforts to realize economic independence by establishing an autonomous and professional business entity with good governance for the santri and intellectuals at that time was a very creative and innovative idea. This initiative was able to stem the economic power of the hegemonic Dutch colonialists at that time.
Rois Syuriyah, Manager of the Australian and New Zealand Nahdlatul Ulama (PCI NU) Special Branches, Nadirsyah Hosen, chatted with PBNU Chairperson Said Aqil Siroj during a virtual PCINU Worldwide gathering which was held on Tuesday (19/5/2020).
KH Hasyim also established cooperatives as business entities that could drive the people's economy long before cooperatives became national independent business entities. Thus, the cooperatives that became the pillars of the national economy, as stated in the 1945 Constitution, are not ideals separate from their historic roots, but had been carried out by the santri long before, commanded directly by KH Hasyim.
NU as a mass base
As the former NU chairman, KH Hasyim Muzadi once declared that the number of NU members was 60 million. Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) estimated that more than 50 percent of Indonesians were NU members, not including those living abroad according to research from Mohammad Sobary in 2018.
Based on the results of a study from the Indonesian Survey Circle (LSI), by Denny JA in 2019, NU was declared the largest mass organization in Indonesia. NU is in the top position with 49.5 percent of the population. This LSI survey proves that NU is not only the largest mass organization on a national scale, but also the largest mass organization in the world. If the current total
population of Indonesia is around 270 million, with around 87 percent Muslim, NU with a percentage of 49.5 percent has a mass base of more than 130 million.
Present challenges
Entering the era of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), human resource issues are increasingly getting attention from almost the entire ASEAN community. This era is called the third millennium, considered the peak of the globalization storm that has hit the Southeast Asian region. This situation will certainly affect the acceleration of change in all lines of human life: social, political, economic and cultural.
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The Seroja Disaster Emergency Response Command was prepared inside the East Nusa Tenggara Nahdlatul Ulama Regional Management Office, in Kupang, Tuesday (20/4/2021).
The AEC means competition in the free market, in both the education and the economic market. Indonesia has been part of this ASEAN free trade with the arrival of traffic from countries in the region comprising Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, Myanmar, Cambodia, Brunei and Vietnam. This is a challenge not only in education and the economy, but also in culture and values of life.
This program is a continuation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) agenda, as well as following up on unfinished programs.
Indonesia and the United Nations have also agreed on the Declaration of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) launched in 2016, with a target of completion in 2030. This program is a continuation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) agenda, as well as following up on unfinished programs.
There are eight targets of the SDGs. First, to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger; second, achieve basic education for all; third, to encourage gender equality and women's empowerment; fourth, reduce child mortality; fifth, to improve maternal health; sixth, fighting HIV/AIDS, malaria and other infectious diseases; seventh, to ensure environmental sustainability; and eighth, to develop a global partnership for development. The eight targets can be grouped into four major issues, namely poverty, education, health and the environment, according to Sastroatmojo in 2012.
In considering the “demographic bonus”, as reported by Statistics Indonesia (BPS) in 2011, the number of children aged 0-9 years was 45.93 million, while children aged 10-19 years was 43.55 million. In 2045, those aged 0-10 will be 35-45 years old, while those aged 10-20 will be 45-54.
At this age they will play an important role in Indonesia. They are expected to be a generation that is intelligent, productive, innovative and is a superior civilization. They will be the golden generation who will also be the nation's leaders.
Indonesia is the fourth most populous country, as well as having much natural wealth potential. Goldman Sachs predicts that Indonesia will be in the top ten countries with the most advanced economies by 2050 along with China and India – and above Japan or South Korea.
Meanwhile, the McKinsey Global Institute in 2012 forecast that by 2030, Indonesia will rank as the seventh largest economy in the world. An optimistic position, which of course is possible if Indonesia has quality leaders and human resources. Therefore, we need future Indonesian leaders who have strong competitive power, both externally and internally.
Recognizing the complexity of these opportunities and challenges, it is necessary to formulate matters concerning NU in the future, namely how to prepare leaders and design the next five-year programs (milestone).
The rukyatul hilal team of the Surabaya City Nahdlatul Ulama (PCNU) Branch observed the new moon at the Al Mabrur Mosque, Nambangan Beach, Kenjeran District, Surabaya, East Java, Thursday (23/4/2020).
There are at least six major programs that need to be formulated. First, focusing on how NU plays a role in the era of globalization, the AEC and the MDGs. Second, the demographic bonus and how the NU will prepare a golden generation for the next decade. Third, how NU formulates Islam in the perspective of nationhood and statehood in the global era.
Fourth, how NU plays a role in strengthening the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia. Fifth, how NU positions its political role in the life of the nation and state. Sixth, how NU positions its role in the context of the people's economic development. This sixth program needs to be worked on immediately. Especially in the era of the Industrial Revolution 4.0, which is the interconnectivity between humans, machines and data which is better known as the internet of things (IoT).
How are NU members able to respond and master information technology in running their businesses?
Recognizing the challenges above and recalling the call of KH Hasyim Asy'ari a century ago, there needs to be an effort to revitalize the ideas and initiatives that KH Hasyim built. The efforts to strengthen the people's economy have actually been revitalized by his grandson, Gus Dur, by initiating the establishment of banks in several regions, including BPR Nusuma.
Then, when he became president, Gus Dur prioritized the people's economy based on local assets by activating MSMEs such as farming and fishing communities. It is a shame that these efforts have not been continued by the next generation.
M Zainuddin
Indeed, there are already many cooperatives in several Islamic boarding schools and some have been able to develop their cooperatives well and rapidly, such as the Sidogiri Islamic Boarding School in East Java. However, this has not been followed by many other pesantren (Islamic boarding school). Therefore, it is time now for the NU economic elite to immediately pay attention to this field of work by providing mass education to Nahdliyin (NU members) in the context of developing the people's economy in the 4.0 era.
If this can be done, NU members who make up half of Indonesia's citizens will be able to become the vanguard of the Indonesian economy. Hopefully.
M Zainuddin, Professor and Rector of UIN Maulana Malik Ibrahim, Malang
(This article was translated by Kurniawan Siswoko).
