By Multiplication of Stube HEMAT in Sumba.          

The pig farm cannot be separated from the daily life of the Sumbanese, except the Muslims. Apart from being a basic need, in certain cases, pig farms become an irreplaceable symbol for other livestock. Almost all houses in the countryside raised pigs. During this time, pigs have been one of the economic supports of the family, and even as savings for children's education fees and the pig farming is one of the best saving.

ASF virus has hit the livestock of Sumba since 2019 and it brought difficulties in people's lives. More than 60% pigs in Sumba died, even the farmers lost their livestock totally. The enthusiasm to raise pigs is still high among Sumba people. The main problem now is the difficulties in getting piglets as the price is very high that make the farmers in Sumba cannot afford them. The East Sumba Regional Government, the Livestock Service Office, and the Legislative support various activities by restoring and developing community farms by allocating a budget for piglet procurement for farmer community groups.

Several groups were already made covering the ‘Harapan Kita’ Group, the ‘Lai Welik’ Group, and the ‘Rita’ Groups with 54 members. These groups were accompanied by multiplication program since the beginning, to establish group, until how to make proposals. Hopefully, the members of this group got support from local government for direct assistance and livestock seeds for each so that pig farming activities that are part of the daily life of the Sumba people will be active again to support the community's economy. (AH) ***