On 6-8 of January 2015 Publish What You Pay Indonesia and Swandiri Institute hosted Open Data Training in Sanggau District, West Kalimantan. 30 participants, consist of 8 representatives of CSOs in Kalimantan Barat (WALHI Kalbar, AMAN Kalbar, YPPN, ELPAGAR Sanggau, Gemawan Kalbar, Dayak Tradition Council, Swandiri Institute) and 22 local leader from 6 villages in Tayan Ilir sub-districts attended enthusiastically. The training mainly focused on equipping participants with know-how in accessing data, and working with data to advocating their aspiration and causes.
Jensi Sartin, Program Development Manager PWYP Indonesia explained that the trainingdesigned to promote transparency and accountability of extractive sector through promoting open data. Sanggau District of West Kalimantan Province, Indonesia was chosen as pilot area for project funded by SEATTI-Hivos because Sanggau is one of bauxite rich district. Interestingly, companies operated there overlapped with activities of local people who lives nearby companies operation in several villages, includes traditional community of Dayak people.
Anam, one of local leader of indigenous community of Dayak, who join in the training belief that such effort to involve community participation will benefits the industry, environment, and the people.
“Having this kind of skill to trace data and communicating it can help us ensure that the industry operation is conducted in the proper way. Thus we can inform the (mining) companies does not conduct any activities that may caused problem for local people and lead to material loss”. In thetraining, Anam and his fellow leaders simulated how to finding data in the internet, as well how to visualise information into an informative graphics.
Arif Munandar from Swandiri Insititute who co-hosted the training and facilitate advocacy inSanggau District explained that there are big asymetric information between local people and the industry. “We hope that through this project, quality of advocacy to ensure local community who affected by extractive sector can gain proper benefits from the industry”.
As Dewi Hasibuan of PWYP Indonesia nicely put “we want to ensure that decision to extract our natural resources should be made through adequate data and with proper communication to affected communities”.