Coffee from the Kayangan Hills Conservation Program for the Economic Sovereignty of Muara Dua Village, Bengkulu

The Bukit Kayangan Women's Conservation Group is a community of female coffee farmers living in Muara Dua Village, Nasal District, Bengkulu. The area of ​​the village is 22.050,51 hectares with a composition of 73% of the village area being the Bukit Kumbas Limited Production Forest (HPT) area of ​​2.856 hectares and the Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park (TN) area of ​​15.581,14 hectares. The residential area and agricultural land area are 3.613,37 hectares or only 4% of the total area. The altitude of Muara Dua Village is 1.200 meters above sea level. The geographical and climatic conditions affect the livelihoods and professions of the majority of residents in Muara Dua Village. Many people work as coffee farmers.

The problem is, since 2011 they have faced threats from large-scale palm oil business expansion. Palm oil companies have controlled 51% of the Muara Village area or approximately 1.846,62 hectares. It is not only Muara Village that is facing this problem, many people have lost their land rights due to palm oil expansion, especially in 7 villages in Nasal District. Not only that, the impact of climate change is also felt, such as decreasing water discharge, the air feels increasingly hot, to decreasing coffee harvests. The Bukit Kayangan Women's Conservation Group is utilizing the Nusantara Fund Direct Funding to restore damaged coffee plantations triggered by the expansion of palm oil plantation areas and pest attacks. For information, this group has previously succeeded in freeing up the Land Use Rights (HGU) that was previously given to palm oil companies.

The first activity carried out was to identify the condition of the agricultural land and the agricultural pattern that would be implemented. In total, the area of ​​the community members' coffee plantations reached 500 hectares and it was directly adjacent to the oil palm plantation. In addition, training was also held related to coffee plantation management to produce quality coffee beans. Members of the Bukit Kayangan Women's Conservation Group learned a lot about coffee tree care, from environmentally friendly pest control to the use of organic fertilizers and the dangers of using chemical fertilizers.

They also received training related to knowledge on how to adapt to climate change, such as selecting coffee varieties that are more resistant to extreme weather changes. In the market identification class, they learned how to process coffee to have a higher selling value, such as more efficient drying of coffee beans and packaging.

Coffee branded “Kopi Pelestari Bukit Kayangan” has now been marketed directly to several major cities. This direct marketing is also expected to be the beginning to break the chain of community dependence on middlemen, so that farmers can enjoy fairer profits. With a series of activities, the Bukit Kayangan Women's Conservation Group not only seeks to increase the selling value of coffee for economic welfare, but also to gain new knowledge related to adaptation to climate change.