Rural Community Empowerment Program Based On Local Wisdom And Social Capital

Abstract

Rural community empowerment aims to make rural communities independent. The central government and local governments have provided assistance to improve the standard of living of rural communities. Therefore, this study aimed to recommend a community empowerment model based on local wisdom and social capital that met the characteristics of the village’s population, geographical condition, and customs. This study was carried out using a descriptive qualitative method through in-depth interviews and observations with the community and village leaders of three villages in Lamandau Regency, Central Kalimantan. Findings suggested that government assistance was still neither effective nor well-targeted, making the suboptimal results. For example, the community once proposed ginger seeds (roots) for their farm, but instead, they received coffee seeds that did not suit the village’s soil. The rural community empowerment model presented in this study is expected to reduce such problems so that government assistance can meet the community’s needs and thus improve the welfare of the people.