Thursday, October 10, 2024
Experts from ITB in Civil Engineering, Clean Water, and Geophysics have spent the past three months in three villages in West Misool District, Raja Ampat Regency, Southwest Papua Province, contributing their work and knowledge through community service activities. The ITB experts, along with the clean water drilling technical team, successfully conducted drilling and located a clean water source that meets health standards. Alongside this achievement, the ITB team also installed the IGW ultrafiltration water purifier developed by Prof. I Gede Wenten. This ultrafiltration technology purifies water using a membrane-based system equipped with antibacterial agents. It effectively filters out iron, colloids, and particles that cause turbidity while preserving essential minerals in the water.
On Thursday, October 10, the residents of Gamta Village, Magey Village, and Kapatcol Village in West Misool District, Raja Ampat Regency, Southwest Papua Province, celebrated the success of gaining access to clean water and ultrafiltration drinking water equipment. Hundreds of villagers joined the celebration at the SD Negeri 18 Gamta field, marked by traditional dances from the Misool islands and a communal drinking ceremony. Attendees, including village leaders and the ITB team, had the chance to collect water from the communal drinking fountain. During the ceremony, district and village leaders, along with the ITB team, emphasized the importance of maintaining and caring for the equipment. The ITB team also demonstrated water quality tests, measuring pH, TDS, and conductivity, which indicated that the water was of good quality, healthy, and mineral-rich. The clean water exploration project involved experts from ITB, including Dr. rer. nat. Widodo, Dr. Eng. Arno Adi Kuntoro, Mohammad Farid, Ph.D., and the ultrafiltration installation team led by Dr. Rofiq Iqbal.
The program received support from local authorities. Moh Saleh Wihel, SE, Secretary of West Misool District, stated that the concept of providing drinking water through ultrafiltration is a new idea in the area. The West Misool District Government expressed gratitude for ITB’s support. The project was also backed by the three Village Heads as part of the use of "Village Funds," which reflects the leadership's commitment to addressing the clean water crisis. This ITB community service project in remote regions of Eastern Indonesia is a pilot program that demonstrates how village funds can be effectively synergized with community service funds from universities.
Representatives from ITB's Directorate of Research and Community Service (DRPM), including Assistant Director for Community Service Dr. Deny Willy Junaidy, Ph.D., and Program Head Ferdyansyah Poernama, A.Md., attended the monitoring visit and ceremony. The project is funded by the LAPI Foundation, DRPM ITB, and supported by the Ministry of Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration (Kemendes PDTT). ITB has also developed an application called Desanesha to help Village Heads directly connect with ITB experts to address village issues through technological assistance.
In line with the 2025–2029 National Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMN), which targets 45 areas as National Priorities and 108 areas as Sectoral/Ministerial Priorities to promote development from the villages and grassroots, the construction of village infrastructure has become the seventh priority program needing special attention. Addressing the clean water crisis and internet connectivity is essential to fulfill infrastructure-related needs. ITB, in collaboration with Kemendes PDTT and local governments, has taken concrete steps to improve the quality of life for communities.
