Bina Swadaya: A Community-Based Organisation

Abstract

This Chapter describes the history and current operation of Bina Swadaya, a community-based mutual aid organization which has been supporting local development for half a century since its establishment in 1967. Embarking on its vision and mission, Bina Swadaya has been evolving from a kind of mass organization from the Ikatan Petani Pancasila (‘Association of Pancasila Farmers’) to a social entrepreneurship organisation which can be categorised as a transitional organisation which integrated a ‘bottom-up’ approach by the local people with the ‘top-down’ government support which it eventually gained for its development-oriented policies. Furthermore, it is documented that later onwards in compliance with the regulations from the Government of Indonesia, Bina Swadaya adapted its role to the socio-political development in the country during three subsequent phases: (1) the Pancasila Social Movement Era (1954–1974); (2) the Socio-Economic Development Institution Era (1974–1999); and (3) the Social Entrepreneurship Institution Era (since 1999). This description of the recent progress in the operation of Bina Swadaya shows the development from a mutual aid to a socio-entrepreneurship organisation, whereby it also seeks to contribute to strengthening strategic partnership for sustainable community development, being one of the SDGs of the United Nations (2015). In addition to its main activities as a community–based mutual aid organisation, Bina Swadaya has been supporting the new approaches of Integrated Microfinance Management as well as Integrated Community-Managed Development, which promote the advanced training of integrated managers to guide and support local peoples’ empowerment through the integration of indigenous knowledge and institutions at various levels and sectors in order to contribute to the realisation of poverty reduction and sustainable community development in Indonesia and elsewhere around the globe.

Bina Swadaya has trained over 10,000 community leaders, spawned the creation of more than 12,000 grassroots self-help groups serving 3.5 million people, and launched 650,000 microfinance institutions with 13.5 million members.

Ashoka (2008)