Planting seeds for sustainable water solutions in Sumbawa

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Members of the Sumbawa Integrated Water Management Forum and Disabilitas Sarea standing knee deep in the sea on Kaung Island holding mangrove seedlings and smiling at the camera.

Members of  the Integrated Water Management Forum plant mangrove seedling on Kaung Island (Yayasan Plan International Indonesia / Irwansyah)

 

In Sumbawa, Indonesia, climate change is profoundly affecting aquaculture farmers and leading to a worrying decline in yields, year after year. But an integrated and inclusive approach to sustainable water management and coastal revitalisation is helping to reverse this trend.

 

Supported by Australia through Water for Women, Plan International Australia, Yayasan Plan International Indonesia and Monash University partnered with the provincial government, private sector, and community organisations, including Forum Disabilitas Sarea, to form the Sumbawa Integrated Water Management (IWM) Forum in 2022. Through the Water for Women project, Climate-Resilient and Inclusive WASH in Indonesia (CERIA), the IWM Forum has now established a coastal area revitalisation project, funded by the provincial government and private sector, and planted 120,000 mangrove seedlings on Kaung Island as a nature-based solution to counteract the threat of seawater encroachment on aquaculture farms in the district.

 

"We are taking part in planting mangroves because we also want to be part of the change for a better future."

- Baiq Hadijah, a member of the IWM Forum and also the Chair of Forum Disabilitas Sarea

 

In addition to coastal revitalisation activities, the IWM Forum is undertaking a review of the draft Long-Term Development Plan for Sumbawa District to ensure climate-resilient IWM is included, and promoting the newly formulated provincial regulation on water resource protection to universities, government agencies, and the private sector. The IWM Forum also plays an important monitoring role, conducting assessments through field trips focusing on integrated water resources management issues and overseeing implementation of the regulation.

 

Determined to leverage water for peace, Muttakin, Chair of the Sumbawa IWM Forum, reiterated their focus on gender equality, disability and social inclusion during discussion of the work program with the Regional Development Planning Agency:

 

“The IWM Forum must continue moving forward with the resources we have. The work programs we have prepared are the embodiment of our joint commitment to ensure that water can be properly managed while giving necessary attention to marginalised groups, including people with disabilities, and reducing the impact of climate change in Sumbawa District."

- Muttakin, Chair of the Sumbawa IWM Forum

 

 

As the world’s largest archipelagic state, consisting of more than 17,500 islands with over 81,000km of coastline, Indonesia is particularly vulnerable to sea-level rise, coastal erosion and saltwater intrusion. Indonesia is ranked in the top-third of countries in terms of climate risk, with high exposure to all types of flooding and extreme heat, both of which are intensifying as the climate changes and already being felt.

 

Water for Women partners with Yayasan Plan International Indonesia, Plan International Australia and local partners to deliver climate-reslient and inclusive WASH services for an estimated 223,088* residents of Manggarai District and Kupang City, Nusa Tenggara Timur, and Sumbawa District, Nusa Tenggara Barat by the end of this year. Importantly, CERIA includes targeted support to every level of government responsible for climate-resilient community-based total sanitation (STBM) in Indonesia, from the national level to the village level, and strengthening linkages between these levels for equitable and sustainable outcomes.

  

*Project targets are based on partner Civil Society Organisations (CSO) baseline studies. Project targets are updated periodically in response to changes in context as appropriate. To see our latest progress towards targets, see our progress. 

 

World Water Day is observed annually on 22 March and this year's theme, 'Water for peace', emphasises the importance of working together to balance everyone’s needs, to ensure that no one is left behind in access to clean water and safe sanitation, and to make water a catalyst for a more peaceful future. 

As the lifeblood of any community, when water is scarce, polluted, denied or usage unfairly shared, conflicts can arise or intensify. For women and girls, people with disabilities and other marginalised groups, water insecurity exacerbates inequities and has disproportionate impacts, including on their health and well-being. Water conflict also increases the risk of violence.

Throughout the world, women are at the frontlines of climate change and it's impacts on water security. With primary responsibility for meeting caregiving and household water needs, including for sanitation and hygiene (WASH), women are water experts in their communities.

Every day, women are brokering peace, driving sustainable agriculture for food security, and delivering WASH for the health and well-being of their families and communities. Women and water can lead us out of this crisis. 

But women cannot do it alone. As climate change impacts increase, and populations grow, we must unite to advance gender equality and accelerate progress on SDG6 - Water and sanitation for all. Everyone has a role to play in creating a fairer and more cohesive society. 

Throughout Asia and the Pacific, Water for Women partners are working with communities, governments, researchers, rights holder organisations, and service providers in 16 countries to deliver climate-resilient and inclusive water and WASH services for all. Together, we are accelerating progress for SDG6 for a water secure and peaceful future for all.

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