Open AccessThe Nexus of COVID-19 Pandemic and Rural Agroforestry Farmers’ Livelihoods in Tasikmalaya Regency, East Priangan, Indonesia
Author(s) -
Levina Augusta Geraldine Pieter,
Marcellinus Mandira Budi Utomo,
Suhartono Suhartono,
Aris Sudomo,
Sanudin Sanudin,
Eva Fauziyah,
Tri Sulistyati Widyaningsih,
Maria Palmolina,
Aditya Hani,
Carmen Minerva Siagian
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
forest and society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.623
H-Index - 8
eISSN - 2549-4724
pISSN - 2549-4333
DOI - 10.24259/fs.v6i1.18773
Subject(s) - livelihood , agriculture , productivity , business , government (linguistics) , revenue , pandemic , agricultural economics , geography , agroforestry , economic growth , economics , covid-19 , finance , medicine , linguistics , philosophy , disease , archaeology , pathology , infectious disease (medical specialty) , biology
The agricultural sector is one of the aspects that was affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, this study aims to describe the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on agroforestry farmers’ livelihoods in rural areas. It was carried out in Tasikmalaya Regency, East Priangan, where mixed garden agroforestry farming supports part of the economic life of the community. The data used were collected between August and September 2021 by interviewing 33 farmer households. A coding and descriptive analysis were carried out to discuss the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on agroforestry farmers and their strategies. Subsequently, the cost-income, revenue cost ratio, and labor productivity analyses were used to assess the feasibility of agroforestry farming before and during the pandemic. The results showed that government policies related to handling the pandemic in form of Large-Scale Social Restrictions (PSBB) and the Implementation of Community Activity Restrictions (PPKM) significantly affected the lives of farmers. These include decreased demand and commodity selling prices, difficulties in marketing agroforestry products, and a decrease in farmers' incomes by 38.45%. The agroforestry business has become less viable due to a reduction in farm productivity from R/C 1.1 before the pandemic to 0.85 during the pandemic, while farmer labor productivity decreased from US$ 3.00 to US$ 2.10. The farmers used direct cash assistance from the government and processed agroforestry products for sale and consumption as a survival strategy during the pandemic. Meanwhile, the government can help agroforestry farmers by increasing road access to rural areas, providing fertilizer and superior seeds, and also optimizing the role of livestock farmer groups.