BANGKA -- PT Timah Tbk's Community Empowerment Program (PPM) continues to target community groups to achieve economic independence. The PPM program that is run is based on the local potential of the community.
One of the PPM programs run by PT Timah Tbk targets the Kampoeng Kelapa group in Jelitik Village, Sungailiat District, Bangka Regency.
Kampoeng Kelapa is a group consisting of coconut collectors in Jelitik Village. In addition to collecting coconuts, groups and communities often make charcoal from coconut shells.
Making this charcoal as an effort to reduce coconut shell waste, usually, this charcoal is made by women's groups in Kampoeng Kelapa.
The charcoal production they do is still manual, so they are sold at a low price. In addition, it is also not easy to market charcoal, because it is usually only bought by satay sellers and only crowded during the new year.
Realizing the potential of the Kampoeng Kelapa group, they plan to make charcoal briquettes that are more in demand and have a selling value. However, they are still constrained by tools and understanding of producing charcoal briquettes.
For this reason, PT Timah Tbk cooperates with the Manufacturing Polytechnic (Polman) of Bangka Belitung to build a machine to make it easier for people to make charcoal briquettes. Polman Babel manufactures crushers and presses to make charcoal briquettes which PT Timah Tbk funds.
The assistance for these two machines was handed over by the Head of the CSR Division of PT Timah Tbk Ebi Wibisana to the Head of the Abdul Malik Group, which was also attended by the Babel Police Representative and Representatives from Jelitik Village, at the Jelitik Village Head Office, Thursday (15/9/2022).
This assistance is expected to help the people of Kampoeng Kelapa in producing charcoal briquettes so that they can have an economic impact on the community.
The head of the Kampoeng Kelapa Group, Abdul Malik, said that so far, his party has only been able to produce charcoal manually, once making charcoal briquettes but the success rate has not been maximized due to limited tools.
"We have wanted to make these charcoal briquettes for a long time, but we also find it difficult to pay for it ourselves. Finally, we discussed it with the ward from the ward assisted by PT Timah Tbk. Finally, we can have the tools to make charcoal briquettes. Because if we just keep making charcoal If it doesn't go forward, it's hard to sell because the buyers are the only ones, but the ones that make charcoal are getting more and more," he said.
He continued, that the selling price of briquettes is also higher than just selling charcoal. Charcoal briquettes also have many enthusiasts, usually used for heating and others.
"Usually, women make charcoal, because we collect coconuts and then sell them to the base. Later the peeled coconut shells are burned into charcoal. There are lots of coconut shells here, so this is maximized," he said.
They are grateful that they can get machine assistance from PT Timah Tbk so that later it can have an economic impact on the community. This PPM program is carried out on an ongoing basis and training is carried out for group members.
"With this machine, we can learn to make charcoal briquettes that have more selling value, women are getting more enthusiastic and of course, this can have an economic impact on the community. Moreover, this program is sustainable from PT Timah Tbk," he said.
Meanwhile, Jelitik Village Head Achmad Riyadi said the PPM program run by PT Timah Tbk is a form of pentahelix collaboration in realizing community economic independence.
"This is a form of pentahelix synergy, where the financing is carried out by PT Timah Tbk, the manufacture of machines is carried out by Polman Babel, the government encourages and bridges and the community is involved so that later it is expected to have an economic impact," he said.
He also appreciated PT Timah Tbk through its CSR for supporting community empowerment programs based on their potential. According to him, this program must be carried out in a sustainable manner.
"I really appreciate PT Timah Tbk's CSR program, with a program that continues like this, people can feel the presence of PT Timah Tbk and this can make the community's economic independence successful," he said.
