Study of Community Empowerment Pilot Project Based on Local Customs for Underdeveloped Village in Border Papua

Abstraksi

This study describes the Community Empowerment Pilot Project in Disadvantaged Areas in border Papua, precisely in Kampung Usku, District Senggi, Keerom Regency, Papua which was designed and implemented since 2016. The methodology in this paper is a qualitative approach to how the project implementation in 2 years about new approach on community empowerment in backward village which more emphasize cultural factor and model of learning by doing. This new approach is an evaluation of the village community empowerment programs in Papua that have not shown satisfactory results in pushing villages into advanced and self-sustaining villages according to program objectives. Kampung Usku was chosen as the location because it is considered to be a very traditional village and an underdeveloped village where people still rely on hunting in the forest, not knowing cultivating, and moving shelter in fulfilling the necessities of life. Preliminary findings, cultural approaches by stimulating the learning community by doing this alone are effective enough to be more advanced in daily activities. The most striking findings are that people are starting to grow crops around the dwelling place, reducing hunting time in the forest, organizing the neighborhood, and starting to trade the results. The previous activities were almost never done.