Katantt.com–In the 90s, Uiasa Village, Semau District, Kupang Regency, East Nusa Tenggara was one of the prime tourist attractions in Kupang Bay. After the cessation of direct Kupang–Darwin (Australia) flights and the monetary crisis.

All tourism sector businesses in Uiasa Village have stopped and only the ruins of buildings (inns and bars) have left memories for the people of Uiasa Village.

Uiasa beaches and coastline actually have a tourist attraction, especially underwater tourism such as diving and snorkeling.

Last Friday (23/10), was the momentum for the return of tourism in Uiasa Village. OCD Beach and Cafe together with the Uiasa Village community launched (soft launching) Uiasa Camp.

OCD Beach and Cafe, Ody Mesakh, said that the launch of community-based ecotourism is a momentum for the return of tourism in Uiasa Village.

The coast of Uiasa Beach has a coral reef ecosystem that is worth exploring. Several parts of the coral reef in Uiasa have been damaged due to fishing using bombs and poison.

“To restore the integrity of the Uiasa coral reef, OCD Beach and Cafe is collaborating with GEF SGP (Global Environmental Facilities-Small Grant Program) Phase VI in the Semau Island area, carrying out the Uiasa Ecotourism Development project to revive tourism in Uiasa Village which once flourished three decades ago ,” explained Ody Mesakh at the launch of Uiasa Camp in Uiasa Village, Semau District, Kupang Regency, Friday (23/10).

He said that for approximately 10 months together with the OCD Beach and Cafe community, they collaborated to improve the nature of the Uiasa coast and develop a network of tourism service providers in Uiasa Village so that the nature of the Uiasa coast was maintained and the village community received direct benefits from tourism.

For 10 months, OCD Beach and Cafe together with the Uiasa community, said Ody, through this project carried out coral reef conservation efforts using bioreeftek (artificial coral reefs) which had been deployed in 60 units of Uiasa waters.

This activity was carried out by involving the Uiasa youth group from the manufacture to the immersion of the bioreeftek in the sea.

“OCD together with volunteers accompany groups of school children in learning English and introducing themselves to the environment to prepare local tour guides,” he said.

Apart from that, Ody said, housewives are also trained in simple English so they can communicate with foreign tourists.

According to Ody, what is no less important is cooking training for groups of mothers using local ingredients. A tourist camping ground managed by the community in Uiasa with toilet facilities has also been prepared along with attraction facilities such as snorkeling, diving and canoeing.

In the long term, it is hoped that the community will gain economic benefits through tourist visits and the village government will continue to assist and develop this ecotourism through village funds.

“The Uiasa Village Government is expected to be able to develop regulations to protect the coastal environment through village regulations and build joint agreements between villages around the coast of Semau Island for environmental protection,” he said.

The coastal tourist attractions that tourists can enjoy when visiting Uiasa Ecotourism Village are quite diverse.

Uiasa Beach with its wide stretch of white sand stretching 1 kilometer is the only beach on the coast of Semau Island where swimming, snorkeling and diving can be done.

“There are several snorkeling and diving points around the coast that are easy to reach and have a variety of corals and fish,” said Ody promoting.

Uiasa Beach has a wide stretch of sand and can be used as a camping ground. Not only can you play on the beach, Uiasa Village also has the Uiasa freshwater pool.

This bathing pool comes from a natural flowing water source and has been built for a long time and is a water source for Uiasa Village.

If you are interested in visiting historical buildings, visitors can visit the Uiasa lighthouse, which is a colonial era construction lighthouse and the only lighthouse on Semau Island that is still in use today.

This lighthouse is located on a hill so you can see the beautiful view of the north coast of Semau Island.

The sunrise at Uiasa Beach is also a moment that cannot be missed if you visit this village.

Uiasa Beach opens to the east so the view of Kupang City at night is also a very open and beautiful view of the sunrise.

The community and youth in Uiasa Village will manage tourist visits in the village.

This community effort is called Camp Uiasa. The facilities provided at Camp Uiasa for visitors are camping tents for overnight stays, snorkeling equipment rentals, cannos and toilet facilities.

Semau community leader, Simon Petrus Pallo, expressed his appreciation for the launch of Uiasa Camp as well as supporting the government’s program in developing sustainable tourism through community empowerment.

“The existence of Uiasa Camp is clear evidence of the community’s active role in advancing tourism on Semau Island. “Uiasa Camp was born because of the active role of the community in cultivating and managing the potential that exists in their village,” said Simon.

He hopes that the launch of Uiasa Camp can spur enthusiasm for other villages on the coast of Semau Island to increase their creativity to create tourist attractions in their areas.

“It is hoped that the end of this Camp will be able to see current tourism opportunities and trends. “Explore and develop the unique potential of the village, such as its natural resources, culture and local wisdom,” he said.

In particular, Simon Petrus Pallo praised the leadership of the Governor of NTT, Viktor Bungtilu Laiskodat, who made tourism one of the priority programs.

As a result, tourism destinations in NTT, including Semau Island, are increasingly widely known by tourists abroad. A number of infrastructure developments are being carried out to support access to tourism destinations in NTT as well as on Semau Island.

“Now, people know about Semau Island, not only about Uiasa Beach but there is also Liman Beach which is busy with visitors,” he said.

For your information, since September 2018, ten civil society organizations and medium business entities, namely; Pikul Association, Imut Motorbike Gang, CIS Timor, Kupang Batanam Community, Dalen Mesa Organic Farming Community, Tafena Tabua Association, OCD Beach and Cafe, Alfa Omega Foundation, and Cemara Foundation are jointly organizing a Social Ecological Resilience program on the Small Island of Semau Island .

This program is a program supported by the Global Environmental Facilities-Small Grant Program (GEF-SGP) Indonesia Phase VI Program.

The main objective of the Social Ecological Resilience program on Semau Island is to build community and nature resilience through sustainable livelihood and conservation practices that are resilient to the impacts of climate change.

The forms of activities carried out by these 10 organizations are; development of organic agriculture, agrosilvo-pastoral and agroforestry development, land and coastal conservation for water and food security, development of local food sources and products, as well as community-based ecotourism, pilot use of renewable energy,

This program runs in 6 villages in Semau District, namely Uiasa Village, Hansisi Village, Huilelot Village, Batuinan Village, and Bokonusan Village, as well as 4 villages in South Semau District, namely Uiboa Village, Uitiuh Ana Village, Uitiuhtuan Village, and Onansila Village.

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