Coinciding with a day after Kartini Day, UGM organized Sekolah Wartawan, focusing on “Empowerment of Women versus Gender Equality” on Monday (Apr. 22) at the UGM Central Building.
About dozens of journalists from Yogyakarta attended the short class, which was delivered by the Head of the UGM Center for Women’s Studies, Dr. Widya Nayati. This monthly class is held for journalists to enhance their insights and knowledge on current issues.
In her presentation, Dr. Nayati, a lecturer in Archaeology at the UGM Faculty of Cultural Sciences (FIB UGM), shared her experiences of extensively traveling to 3T (frontier, outermost, underdeveloped) regions and accompanying students during Community Service Program (KKN) in the various areas of Indonesia.
However, in recent years, she has spent more time doing community service on Alor Island and Sabu Raijua Island, East Nusa Tenggara. These islands are among the southernmost islands in the Indonesian archipelago.
According to Dr. Nayati, during her time there, she became accustomed to facing difficult situations such as water scarcity or not bathing for several days to conserve the limited water allocated by the local village government.
She even participated in village festivities, enjoying corn rice with the village women, who lived in poverty in arid conditions.
While accompanying KKN students, she educated and empowered women in these remote villages. She also encouraged homemakers to produce MSME (Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises) products that could be sold to tourists visiting the exotic rock cliffs in the area.
“It’s not easy, but we continue to do it with every KKN deployment,” she said.
She and her team also contributed to improving the health and economic status of the residents affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and the Seroja cyclone disaster.
Some of their achievements include processing rainwater into alkaline and basic water, Waste Edu Center Rai Hawu, utilizing natural resources and developing science and technology.
In that regency, child marriages have decreased to 8.06% in 2022 from 10.82% in 2018. For Dr. Nayati, empowering women also means empowering their entire families.
According to her, those who want to engage in community service must shed their subjective nature and selfishness by immersing themselves directly in community life.
“I think it’s important to empty oneself, use their language and perception, don’t follow one’s desires,” added Dr. Nayati.
Regarding women’s empowerment and child protection programs, Dr. Nayati mentioned that her center collaborates with the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection to continue conducting studies to provide information, inputs, and recommendations to local governments and the wider community.
Dr. Nayati believes that a holistic approach is crucial in enhancing women’s empowerment, which impacts not only the individual women themselves but also their families and the community.
“By empowering women comprehensively, equality will be achieved in various aspects of life, leading to community development,” she said.
Author: Dita
Editor: Gusti Grehenson
Photographer: Donnie