Fostering Communication Between Villages Through Forum Itah
At the end of July 2023 YTS held the 3rd Forum Itah (Our Forum) in 3 subdistricts in the Gunung Mas Regency, which are Damang Batu, Miri Manasa and North Kahayan Hulu. In each subdistrict, the forum is attended by the government and community from the villages where YTS-KSK’s Community Development and Empowerment (PPM) program is running. The agenda of the meeting was to review and evaluate together the PPM work plan for the year, while discussing the issues and challenges faced. At the end of the meeting, the forum would agree on the village that would host the next Forum Itah. The first one was held in November 2022 and would happen twice a year. It was created to foster communication and relationships between villages in each subdistrict, in the hopes that it will allow for comprehensive development. Ideally, information and resources would be exchanged among villages and it would form a collective voice that can effectively lobby institutions for support, whether that be upper government, the private sector or NGOs.
