The decline in extreme poverty in Central Lombok Regency, West Nusa\nTenggara (NTB), in recent years cannot be separated from the role of HM\nNursiah. As Deputy Regent and Chair of the Regional Poverty Reduction\nCoordination Team (TKPKD) for Central Lombok, she has been a key figure\noverseeing various poverty alleviation efforts in the area known as Gumi\nTatas Tuhu Trasna (Tastura). By 2025, the extreme poverty rate in\nCentral Lombok was successfully reduced to 1.39 per cent, a decrease of\naround 13,000 people. Entering 2026, the number of residents living in\nextreme poverty fell further to 0.72 per cent, or approximately 8,000\npeople out of a total population of 1.1 million.<\/p>\n
For Nursiah, tackling extreme poverty requires more than just\ntemporary aid. The senior bureaucrat, who has held various career\npositions within the Central Lombok Regency Government, believes that a\ntargeted, data-based approach is key to ensuring programmes genuinely\nreach the communities in need. In her capacity as Chair of the TKPKD,\nNursiah strengthened cross-sector coordination, updated poverty data,\nand expanded the scope of interventions through the regional budget\n(APBD) as well as support from the National Alms Agency (Baznas) and\ncorporate social responsibility programmes. \u201cWe cannot work optimally if\nour data is still a mess. That is why, under the direction of the\nRegent, we always emphasise this, so we know what the community actually\nneeds,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Together with Central Lombok Regent Lalu Pathul Bahri, Nursiah is\ncommitted to building Tastura into a more developed and prosperous\nregion. As a percentage, the extreme poverty rate in Central Lombok is\namong the lowest in NTB. However, the large population means the\nabsolute number of people in extreme poverty remains relatively high.\nThis situation is Nursiah\u2019s primary focus in pursuing the target of zero\nper cent extreme poverty by 2029. \u201cPoverty alleviation cannot be done by\nthe Regional Government alone. It requires collaboration from all\nparties,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n
This commitment is realised by building communication with various\nstakeholders, not just relying on the APBD. One result is the provision\nof hundreds of liveable houses for the community through the Self-Help\nHousing Stimulant Assistance Programme (BSPS) from the Ministry of\nHousing and Residential Areas (PKP), facilitated by the aspiration of\nDeputy Speaker of the Indonesian House of Representatives, Sari Yuliati.\n\u201cAlhamdulillah, we have now received hundreds of new buildings from the\nBSPS Programme through the aspiration of Ibu Sari Yuliati,\u201d she\nsaid.<\/p>\n
According to Nursiah, poverty is a multidimensional issue requiring\nthe involvement of all elements. The business sector is encouraged to be\nmore supportive of local workers, universities are expected to\ncontribute through research and social solutions, banks are urged to\nexpand financing access, while youth organisations and social\ncommunities are involved in village community empowerment. \u201cAs I often\nsay at every event, work like this cannot be done by the Regent and\nDeputy Regent alone. All parties must collaborate to handle this,\u201d she\nstressed.<\/p>\n
She also believes that the orientation of local government policy\nmust continue to be directed towards programmes that have a direct\nimpact on the community. Poverty alleviation, she argues, cannot be\nachieved through ceremonial approaches or temporary aid alone, but\nrequires policy alignment and real budgetary support. Therefore, the\nCentral Lombok APBD needs to be increasingly focused on sectors that\ndirectly affect the poor, such as agriculture, MSMEs, education, health,\njob training, and strengthening the village economy. \u201cGoing forward,\nincluding next year\u2019s budgeting, we will certainly build more sectoral\ncommitments from Regional Apparatus Organisations (OPD) in designing\nprogramme activities. Then, development and coordination with other\nstakeholders, State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN), Regional-Owned Enterprises\n(BUMD), and banks, and directing this into a commitment strengthened by\na Regent\u2019s Regulation (Perbub),\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n
Beyond poverty alleviation, the Central Lombok Regency Government\nalso runs a special scholarship programme for children who are\nmemorisers of the Qur\u2019an (tahfiz 30 juz), orphans, and children from\nunderprivileged families to study at the Faculty of Medicine. This\ninitiative by Pathul-Nursiah has been running since their first term in\noffice through cooperation with several state universities, such as the\nUniversity of Mataram and UPN Veteran Jakarta. \u201cThis has been our\npriority programme with the Regent since the first term. And\nAlhamdulillah, these students are now in the final stages of their\neducation,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Nursiah considers poverty to have a broad impact on various social\nproblems, including stunting and early marriage. Therefore, this issue\nis a priority for the local government. \u201cIt is intertwined. Poverty\ncauses early marriage, and early marriage leads to stunting. Although\nnot entirely the same, many cases found are like this,\u201d she added.\nCurrently, the stunting rate in Central Lombok is recorded at 9.31 per\ncent, lower than in several other regions. The local government targets\nthis figure to continue declining each year. \u201cHopefully next year it can\nmove towards 8 or 7 per cent. Because we are also quite focused on\nreducing this figure by creating innovative programmes. One of them is\nthe Lempot Stunting programme, designed to improve nutritional intake\nwhile strengthening the economy of families with stunted or at-risk\nchildren,\u201d she explained. Through this programme, target families in 40\nred-zone villages receive laying hens complete with coops and feed. The\nprogramme is expected to sustainably meet children\u2019s animal protein\nneeds while increasing family income from the produce.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/nursiah-the-figure-behind-the-decline-of-extreme-poverty-in-tastura-1782359471", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }