No land farmers who live around protected forest area are rattan farmers in Parigi Mpu Village, Parigi Moutong District, in Central Sulawesi. There are 30 households who depend on natural rattan. 8-12 tons rattan per month is still supplied from the village to Palu as capitol city of Central Sulawesi.

“This month, we had collected 13 tons of rattan. Wait a local buyer from Palu come here, and we sale regularly. Each 100 kg as 120.000 rupiah,” said Charles in the small house of his friend who is another rattan farmer, in Parigi Mpu (6/25).

When the buyer could not come to buy their rattan, it is a bad news for Charles and all farmers in Parigi Mpu. Almost of rattan farmers ready to be uncertain labors in many informal sectors in Parigi.

“Be rattan farmer as a good for me. Rattan still is the only chance to get cash money for us. When buyer never comes here, we go to other village or to town, be labor,” added clearly by Charles.

Parigi Mpu Village is one poor village of 6 poor villages in West Parigi. The PNPM (Program Nasional Pemberdayaan Masyarakat) that is the national poverty program of Indonesian Government by World Bank support was done in this village. The PNPM just focused on public facilities as like building mosque, irrigation channel, posyandu (local center building of community health services as special for women and children) and many kinds of village public infrastructure.

“Rattan farmers contribute 10.000 rupiah each person of us to built our mosque. Almost each month after rattan sole,” said Charles how rattan farmers done in their village development.

All of the rattan farmers in Parigi Mpu are young people. They are teenagers who are 17-30 years old. The natural rattan area is 7 km from the village as border area of protected forest area in Parigi Moutong District. When we look at the spirit of the young rattan farmers as like popular title of cowboy Hollywood movie, the Young Guns. They are the local economic survivors of poor 30 households in Parigi Mpu Sub village.(tJong)