UGM and the Serang Regency Government have committed to strengthening development cooperation in Serang Regency by applying the pentahelix concept. Development with this concept involves various stakeholders from government, academia, industry, communities or society, and the media. The KKN-PPM UGM Tanara Unit’s fourth period, held from December 16, 2022, to February 4, 2023, in Tanara District, Serang Regency, is one form of UGM’s commitment to strengthening collaboration through the implementation of this concept. The KKN-PPM UGM Tanara Unit has successfully carried out the main program of revitalizing cultural/religious tourism based on local wisdom in Tanara District. The implementation of the religious tourism revitalization program was carried out through strengthening culture by developing local arts, including organizing the Tanara Cultural Festival, which was launched on January 12, 2023.
In addition to focusing on religious tourism in Serang, several potentials that can be developed in Serang District need to be prepared together with UGM. Therefore, a monitoring and evaluation agenda of the partnership needs to be held. Held at the Community Service Directorate Meeting Room (3/1), Head of Bappeda Litbang, Drs. H. Rachmat Maulana, and the Serang District Government officials were received directly by the Vice Rector for Student Affairs, Community Service, and Alumni, Dr. Arie Sujito, S.Sos., M.Si, accompanied by the Directorate of Community Service UGM and the UGM Community Service Team in Serang District. Also present was Prof. Dr. Suratman, M.Sc. from the Faculty of Geography, who is also a member of UGM’s Academic Senate Commission II.
Dr. Arie Sujito, S.Si., M.Si., who is monitoring and evaluating together with the Serang District Government, stated that many modalities need to be strengthened to explore the culture and potential of the community through KKN-PPM programs or community service as a means of learning to realize a prosperous community. “Culture branding of Serang District needs to be strengthened because of its rich culture. We need to encourage UGM’s KKN-PPM students to build that cultural narrative in the era of social media as one way of promoting the potential of Serang District,” he said. Prof. Dr. Suratman also supported Dr. Arie Sujito’s statement, that what was conveyed by the Vice Rector for Student Affairs, Community Service, and Alumni of UGM was also part of UGM’s noble spirit since the beginning, which is UGM builds villages, nations, and countries. “The village is the smallest country. If the village is prosperous, the country will be fertile. It would be very good if the people of Serang District together with KKN-PPM UGM could work together to build villages, considering that Serang is still superior in agriculture, fisheries, and forestry, which can be encouraged to become agro-industry, including agro-tourism,” said Prof. Suratman.
The cooperation between DPKM UGM and the Serang District Government has been going on since 2021. At that time, the Regent of Serang District, Hj. Ratu Tatu Chasanah, SE, M.Ak. contacted DPKM UGM and conveyed the desire for a plan to establish the Syekh Nawawi Al-Bantani Museum and Islamic Center, and DPKM UGM came directly to visit the location, which was then followed by the signing of an MoU. Head of the the student community service Sub-Directorate, Nanung Agus Fitriyanto, S.Pt., M.Sc., Ph.D., explained that the agreement was followed by UGM’s commitment to send KKN-PPM UGM students to Serang Regency as an initial ammunition in making this collaboration successful. “The Rural Development Program and KKN-PPM in Serang Regency are one form of UGM’s support for this synergy to continue and produce the expected results,” he said.
The Head of Bappeda Litbang of Serang Regency, Mr. Racmat Maulana, also expressed his hope that the presence of UGM could encourage the people of Serang Regency to be more familiar with the potential of their own region so that community empowerment can run well. “We agree that we must start all of this by empowering our community first by continuing to approach several parties, which have the potential to become partners as explained by Prof. Suratman,” he said.
Discussions and ideas continued to develop during the meeting regarding the synergy between DPKM UGM and the government of Serang Regency. The Director of Community Service at UGM, Dr. dr. Rustamaji, ended the discussion by stating that the plans that had been presented would start to be executed this year. “We are very pleased that UGM’s KKN-PPM activities in Serang Regency will be enriched with several programs and fully supported by the local government of Serang Regency, with the hope that this synergy will yield more mature results and bring many benefits,” he said.
The event concluded with a group photo and was followed by a field trip to Pemerti Kali Code and the Batik Village in Wukirsari, serving as a means for the Serang Regency Government to learn and develop best practices from these areas. Despite the rain that persisted throughout the visit, it did not dampen the spirits of both parties to continue discussing and sharing the potential and challenges of their respective regions.
