Collective Economic Solutions: KAPA Women Farmers Fight Back in West Pasaman with Hydroponic Melon Farming 

In 2019, 200 KAPA Melawan farmers successfully reclaimed 600 hectares of their ancestral land, inherited from a palm oil plantation company. This was achieved as the company sought to implement replanting or replanting oil palms concurrently with the expiration of the land use permit. Furthermore, to ensure the recognition and protection of their customary rights, Kapa farmers submitted a Land Object for Agrarian Reform (TORA) to the Ministry of Agrarian Affairs and Spatial Planning/National Land Agency (ATR/BPN) through the assistance of the Indonesian Farmers Union. Following the reclamation, for years, farmers have used their land to grow corn, rice, papaya, secondary crops, and other crops, contributing to improved farmer welfare.

Unfortunately, in 2024, the reclaimed land was again unilaterally seized by a palm oil plantation company, resulting in the loss of access to livelihoods and income for farmers. Furthermore, farmers who have been fighting to defend their customary land rights continue to face intimidation and pressure from the company. Furthermore, the loss of their source of income has impacted their fighting spirit and the economic difficulties they face in meeting their daily needs.

Therefore, KAPA Women Farmers Fight with the assistance of the Padang Legal Aid Institute (LBH) initiated the implementation of a program to strengthen the economy of Kapa farmers after facing land grabbing (Land Grabbing) through hydroponic melon cultivation on collective farmer land of 360 m² or 0,036 hectares, as well as a forum for farmers to increase the consolidation of the women farmer movement in maintaining and protecting the areas they manage from the threat of oil palm plantations.

As a result, 31 female farmers from Kapa have acquired the knowledge and skills to cultivate melons hydroponically, from seeding and maintenance to pollination, harvesting, and post-harvest processing. The potential yield for a single harvest is 1.360 melons, with a potential economic value of 136 million rupiah. This has also resulted in the formation of five female farmer leaders who actively lead organizational activities, including advocacy on agrarian conflicts and alternative economic development.