Bantul hen campaign aims high

Slamet Susanto, The Jakarta Post/Bantul

As proud parents beamed on as their children received their report cards on Saturday, noisy hens clucked their approval.

During the event at the elementary school near Samas beach in Bantul, Yogyakarta province, students lined up to receive their report cards while their parents were each given three hens.

Parents get the hens on one condition: they must raise and breed them so they produce eggs and more chicks, to help the parents make money and to help supply the children with needed nutrients.

The school function was interrupted briefly when a hen managed to slip the grasp of a parent. The hen made a run for it, with parents, students and teachers right on her tail.

"Gotcha. Poor hen, never went to school," Sukamto, the father of student Jales Bahari, grumbled after catching the hen.

"Once they are given to the students, the hens and eggs are not allowed to be sold. The eggs are for the students to eat to increase their protein intake," said Suratsih, one of the school's teachers.

The hen campaign was initiated by Bantul Regent Idham Samawi. The regent said giving hens to parents could help put an end to malnutrition in Bantul.

Young children need sufficient protein in order to develop, he said.

"People in the country only get nutrients from vegetables, rarely getting to eat meat and other animal products like eggs," said Idham.

The campaign is also meant to make the children more responsible and to teach them how to be entrepreneurs.

"They are given three hens and told that they are responsible for taking care of the hens and breeding them. This can teach the children invaluable life lessons," said Idham.

The campaign reached 91,000 elementary school students throughout Bantul last year. "The programs will continue. This year, we will hand out hens to 15,000 elementary school students," said Idham. Each hen costs the Bantul government Rp 20,000 (US$2).