13 July 2007 - NTT is one of the poorest and least developed provinces in Indonesia.  Action Against Hunger carried out a survey in the region which revealed alarming food security indicators. In response to the findings, Action Against Hunger decided last June to open a base in this zone.

Structural vulnerability

For people living in Timor Tenggara Selatan (TTS), a district on the island of Timor, the situation there gives rise for great concern.  On the one hand, they are faced with poor road infrastructure and an outdated electricity network, which reduces their access to education, health and markets. Agriculture is the region’s main alimentary and financial resource; meagre agricultural production has left them hungry and without enough money to cover their basic needs.   

Lack of water is another serious problem. Many homes do not have access to a nearby water supply so it can take over an hour for people to collect water and bring it back. In TTS, most households have a small vegetable garden, irrigated only by rainwater. This makes yields unpredictable. The production of corn for example, the main local food staple, has decreased by 30% this year due to El Nino-related drought.

One in two children suffering from chronic malnutrition

The main consequence of a poor harvest is that people do not have enough to eat in the period between the two harvests, during which time families are obliged to decrease the number and quality of their meals per day. They resort to eating seed reserves and to selling their livestock to raise money to purchase food. These adaptation strategies lead to a massive deterioration in their nutritional well-being and increase vulnerability to illness and disease, especially among children. 

Furthermore, the lack of water and its unequal quality contingent on the seasons results in outbreaks of diarrhoea which drastically affect children’s’ health and lead to increasing rates of child mortality. The consequence of this precariousness in TTS: more than one child in two suffers from chronic malnutrition.

Improving access to food and water

It is in response to this situation of food insecurity that Action Against Hunger is intervening in Boking and Amanatun Utara in TTS.  “We are going to reinforce the local capacities by improving the knowledge of the local communities and the institutions (agricultural projects and income-generating activities) and thereby preventing malnutrition.. We also have a programme in place to protect and increase water resources,” says Olivier Franchi, Action Against Hunger’s Head of Mission in Indonesia. The three-year programme is financed by AQUA and provides a long term structure to improve access to water and food, and prevent a further deterioration in the nutritional status of the population.

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