By: Idham Farsha (Marine Species Site Coordinator - Kotawaringin Barat), Casandra Tania (Marine Species Officer)

As the frontline to protect dugong and seagrass in West Kotawaringin, Community Supervisory Groups (Pokmaswas) in four villages in Kumai Sub-district, Central Kalimantan, attended Pokmaswas Training in Dugong and Seagrass Conservation at Teluk Bogam Village Hall, on August 21 - 23. The training was carried out as a material briefing on the functions and duties of Pokmaswas members who are responsible for monitoring activities related to the utilization of marine resources related to threats to dugong and seagrass.

During the training, Idham Farsha, Marine Species SSite Coordinator WWF-Indonesia, provided training materials on the Indonesian Dugong and Seagrass Conservation Project (DSCP) Program. The establishment of Pokmaswas in West Kotawaringin is supported by DSCP Indonesia, which in this case is a collaboration between the Directorate of Conservation and Marine Biodiversity, Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries with WWF-Indonesia, the Oceanographic Research Center - Indonesian Institute of Sciences, and the Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Science - Bogor Agricultural University.

The trainees, who are residents from Kubu, Sungai Bakau, Teluk Bogam, and Keraya villages, not only received material on the conservation of protected aquatic animals, but also engaged in various forms of discussion. One of the discussions was held in the hope of achieving a common understanding of the relationship between Village-Owned Enterprises (BUMDes) and Pokmaswas.

Participants received material on dugong and seagrass from Casandra Tania "Cassie", WWF-Indonesia's Marine Species Officer. In her presentation, Cassie said that dugongs and seagrasses, as well as other aquatic animals and types of marine ecosystems, can be monitored by Pokmaswas in a simple way, namely by using "community maps". This community map was created by WWF-Indonesia and Pokmaswas members to illustrate the work areas of each Pokmaswas. Later, this community map will be placed in a place that can be accessed by anyone. Pokmaswas members can report their findings in the field by marking several things on the map, including encounters with marine biota, ecosystem observations, and threats that have been agreed to be monitored together. Monitoring results will be recapitulated monthly by Yuanita Mediawati as the Marine Species Site Assistant for the West Kotawaringin area.

In addition, the participants were taught about the importance of community organizing by Nur Syamsuddin Buchori, a lecturer at the SEBI College of Islamic Economics (STEI). This material aims to enable participants to explore the potential of their respective work areas and determine various strategic steps in developing the village through activities as members of BUMDes and Pokmaswas. This understanding, along with regulations related to fishing gear, as well as fisheries and marine activities, ranging from vessel administration to fishing lanes appropriate to the type of vessel, was conveyed to the participants by Suhartaya from the Pontianak Marine Resources and Fisheries Monitoring unit on the second day of the training.

During the activity, there was very high enthusiasm from the participants. "Hopefully in the future there will continue to be learning like this, and at the same time there will be comparative studies to areas that also have Pokmaswas," said Mr. Poliyono from Keraya Village.

Armed with the material that has been delivered, Pokmaswas members have been able to develop work plans in the future, one of which is monitoring activities with people who are not Pokmaswas members. It is hoped that from the results of this training, Pokmaswas can work optimally according to its duties and functions to monitor the ecosystem around them. Evaluation of Pokmaswas will be conducted in the third month after the training. This evaluation will also refresh the training materials that have been carried out.

Good luck to all Pokmaswas members!