Young farmers regeneration policy in Indonesia: a capability approach

Abstract

How does a government persuade young people to stay in farming? This is a question that is very relevant around the world today. The Indonesian government has been making well-funded targeted policies since 2013. This provides rich documentation that allows my thesis to investigate the different factors that affect individual choices in a highly diverse society.

The analysis is done using a multimethod approach. I start with a quantitative analysis of the Indonesian Family Life Survey, conducted in 2007 and 2014 to investigate changes in employment and rural-urban dynamics, including population migration between rural and urban areas. However, the quantitative analysis leaves questions unanswered about individual motivation and experiences. To investigate these qualitative issues in contrasting contexts, in the second stage of my research I collected primarily qualitative data in two villages.

Kampung Tunggilis is a religious community that uses modern technology as little as possible as part of its opposition to modernity and its anti-colonial movement. It lives beside a modern young farmer community that is training its members to join a Japanese agricultural apprenticeship programme. Meanwhile, Kampung Cecer in East Nusa Tenggara Province is working hard to become a world-class tourism community in Labuan Bajo. Young farmers in this area are battling the official policy of privatising traditional forest land and restricted access to farming inputs. In the two villages, I conducted interviews and group discussions with young farmers as well as participatory observation. In addition, I interviewed policymakers and analysed the content of, and reactions to, policy documents, promotional videos, social media sites and other forms of farmer-oriented policy communication.

Using constructivist grounded theory (CGT) methodology to guide fieldwork design and analysis, I applied the concepts of aspiration, access (to market and resources) and capability to explain the formulation of regeneration programs and how young people in rural areas respond to them. The findings illuminate the mismatch between government ideals and local realities (e.g., young farmers’ concerns about accessing resources to allow them to realise their capabilities). This underlines the importance of developing a regeneration policy more responsive to the specific needs of indigenous and marginalised young farmers.