With COVID-19 cases still rising in parts of Indonesia after a year of the pandemic, and many small and medium enterprises and young people across the country face uncertainties to their future and well-being.

In response, Citi Foundation and UNDP Indonesia have decided to put young people as ‘agents of change’ and recently co-led a Youth Co:Lab Bootcamp which aimed to empower youth entrepreneurs growth amid the pandemic challenges. In partnership with the Ministry of Youth and Sports, Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy, UNDP and Citi Foundation collaborated with Kinara Venture Capital and Akademi Kewirausahaan Masyarakat of Universitas Gadjah Mada to develop the six- month programme. Held entirely online, the programme also provided mentorship for SDG-focused youth enterprises. The event culminated in a “Demo Day” where participants showcased their ideas.

Six youth entrepreneurs were chosen for their ability to focus on the SDGs during the pandemic.

Agriculture - Sustainable Farming

• Kulaku

A social enterprise based in Palembang, Kulaku aims to empower coconut farmers. The enterprise has 12 coconut-based products including organic virgin coconut oil. In the three years since it was established, Kulaku has supported the education of 100 children of farmers and has partnered with villages around Palembang. It plans to expand to Nias and Jambi. With 100 farmers’ children, 40 farmers, and monthly production up to 18 tons of products, Kulaku was selected during Youth Co:Lab 2020 and will represent Indonesia in Youth Co:Lab Asia Pacific Summit

• Blantix

Focusing on agriculture and farming, Blantix is part of Inatech Group, a youth-led startup group focusing on MSMEs development and sustainable farming. Blantix is an e-commerce company focusing on sustainable farming based in East Nusa Tenggara and Malang, East Java. Aiming to empower farmers, Blantix offers three programs that aim to solve farmers’ concerns – such as a smart auction system to support farmers sell their products, a smart farming system to support livestock management, and crowdfunding to further support local farmers in developing their business. Within two years, Blantix has successfully supported 120 farmers and has supported the sale  of 1, 275 livestock

• Halo Food

Halo Food is a women-led social enterprise focusing on empowering women corn farmers based in Bulukumba, Sulawesi. Halo Food was founded based on the large yields of corn in the area, and the lack of public interest in maximizing the management of the product itself. Halo Food focuses on capacity building in agriculture background for youth around Bulukumba.

Women’s Empowerment

• Sa Perempuan Papua
  

Sa Perempuan Papua is tech capacity building social enterprises that aim to empower women in Papua through capacity building program. This online platform specifically targeted the most common issues for women in Papua such as sexual violence, mental health, sexual health and reproduction. Sa Perempuan Papua provided advocacy services, capacity building, and an online safe space for survivors where they can share,– report, connect, consult  and work towards healing. Over the past three years, Sa Perempuan Papua has supported 112 women in Papua on sexual violence and health cases.

Micro Small Medium Enterprises Empowerment

• Komerce

Originally called Kampung Marketer, Komerce is a social enterprise that aims to empower youth led MSMEs through technology and digital marketing. Komerce establish a partnership with villages in Java. Within three years, Komerce has collaborated to support more than 700 MSMEs, trained 1,300 youth, and empowered 600 youth on digital marketing. Following training by Komerce, the youth hope to connect with MSMEs that need digital marketing support. By empowering young people to be self-employed, Komerce aims to reduce poverty level through youth employment.

• Adek O UMKM

Adek O UMKM is a social enterprise in East Nusa Tenggara that aims to connect owners of MSMEs and sustainable local farmers in their area. In addition to promoting local agricultural products, Adek O UMKM also provides capacity building for local farmers and MSME owners. Within three years of development, Adek O UMKM has supported 24 MSMEs boost production and marketing of local products.

Call For Action

These are just six of nearly 40 young people who participated in the programme to empower themselves and others. This is an example of how youth can choose to actively contribute to the SDGs, especially  during the pandemic. Most importantly, their work also contributes to Indonesia’s green economic recovery process.

Following the event, the selected enterprises will participate in the Asia Pacific Summit scheduled to take place later this year in a similar format. Enterprises will be selected based on performance, by a panel at the regional level, following which, they will work on incubation modules and participate in the Monitoring and Evaluation program. The chosen enterprises will also receive support including networking opportunities with programme alumni and will also have the opportunity to participate in the springboard programme.  

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Writing by Lady Diandra