Aceh's history records the names of several remarkable female heroes during past struggles and sovereigns. There was Cut Nyak Dien who boldly led an army to fight against the Dutch invaders in 1848-1908; and Keumalahayati or Admiral Malahayati - well-known as the world’s first female admiral - who led Aceh’s warship fleet with a special force of Inong Balee or ‘widows’. These are just two names from many other Acehnese women who have achieved impressive feats during Indonesia’s struggle for independence.
However, an example of living Indonesian female warrior is Ibu Suryati, one of our Ibu Inspirasi from North Aceh. Ibu Suryati was born in Tunong Matang Village, in the coastal area of Lapang, North Aceh. There most men make a living by working as fishermen, while women rarely have a higher education and therefore stay at home or collect oysters to sell in the local markets. In Ibu Suryati’s village, there are only two types of successful people. First, farmers with acres of land and access to large financial resources. Second, well-educated people who are employed as a civil servant in local government offices. Ibu Suryati’s family do not belong to either group so she must strive for her family to achieve their definition of success.
Ibu Suryati has tried to run small businesses and does other odd jobs to help her husband - who works as a fish farmer - to make ends meet and feed the family. Other than taking care of the house, collecting oysters, selling cakes and clothes, and running a small shop in the village, she is also working as a teacher for Early Childhood Education Program (PAUD) with a salary of Rp. 30,000 (US$2.25) per month.
However, even all of these efforts are still not enough to meet the needs of her family. Therefore, in early 2015, Ibu Suryati decided to join one of the business groups assisted by Kopernik’s Wonder Women Program -- a program supported by ExxonMobil aimed at increasing women’s economic empowerment through the sale and distribution of clean energy technologies. Due to her previous business experience and skills in selling products, Ibu Suryati managed to become the best performing ‘Wonder Woman,’ or sales agent, with the highest technology sales results in 2015.
This achievement surely made the other Wonder Women in her business group proud. It has also increased the popularity of the business group and placed them as the best performing group in the program. In addition, due to the skills she gained in public speaking and her excellence in the craft of cooking, Ibu Suryati was also invited to represent Kopernik at the Ubud Food Festival in 2016 - an annual international culinary event held in Ubud, Bali.
Ibu Suryati has always been well aware that she needs to create a solid business and open up new job prospects for her own family and other women in her community. Therefore, in early 2016, when the Wonder Women Program provided additional entrepreneurship opportunities for the best performing group in the program, Ibu Suryati and her business group immediately took up the challenge.
Along with four other members of the group Ibu Suryati, began preparing to launch a new business. They started by identifying the types of businesses needed and the available opportunities around them in order to determine the focus of their business and to prepare a business plan.
This preparation was done through a number of meetings, conducting surveys, and undertaking some training facilitated by Kopernik about entrepreneurship. After reviewing the results of surveys, discussions and cost calculations, Ibu Suryati and her friends finally decided to run a business of bandeng presto - a modern Indonesian milkfish dish cooked using a pressure cooker which makes the fish tender to the bones. The abundant supply of milkfish in her village, added with the entrepreneurship knowledge and skills that offered by Kopernik convinced Ibu Suryati and her teammates that the business could be a great success.
So, the business group ‘Sari Laut’ was officially launched in July 2016, with Ibu Suryati holding the trusted position as the group leader. The launch event was attended by the representatives of North Aceh Government through the North Aceh Social Services in Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection, local village officers, and Kopernik. Inviting relevant local government and village officers was Ibu Suryati’s strategy to build greater support for her business group and increase their opportunities for success.
Selling the products of ‘Sari Laut’ through multiple retailers in specific locations is one of the main strategies of this business group. Additionally, the creativity, patience, and perseverance of group members have resulted in Sari Laut’s ability to succeed in growing new market opportunities including selling bandeng prestoto tourists as a souvenir from the region.
With determination and continued efforts, the financial position of Ibu Suryati and the other women in her business group continues to improve. Her husband - whose fish farming business once went bankrupt due to the lack of financial resources - is now back in business with the support of his wife. Additionally, Ibu Suryati’s teammates are now no longer dependent solely on their PAUD teacher salaries. All of this is due to the success of the bandeng presto business!
Ibu Suryati and the ‘Sari Laut’ group is the first women's business group in North Aceh that produces bandeng presto as an iconic product of North Aceh. Her strong persistence and determination have elevated Ibu Suryati to become an inspiring figure in her community, just like the famous Acehnese warriors Cut Nyak Dien and Keumalahayati.
The Wonder Women Western Indonesia is a women economic empowerment program. Working together with ExxonMobil as our funding partner, Kopernik has been running this program in North Aceh, Tuban and Bojonegoro since 2010.
