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Human Initiative holds Kongres Kemanusiaan Indonesia to mark 22nd anniversary
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(Courtesy of Human Initiative)
J
akarta-based NGO Human Initiative held the Kongres Kemanusiaan Indonesia (Indonesian Humanitarian Congress) on Dec. 15 to celebrate its 22nd anniversary .
Held at the Hotel Millenium Sirih and simultaneously streamed as a webinar, the forum was organized around four main themes representing the current issues faced by Indonesian communities: Implications of COVID-19 for Humanitarianism; SDGs and the Indonesian Humanitarian Agenda; Prospects of the Humanitarian Movement; and the Context of Indonesian Humanitarianism.
According to Human Initiative president Tomy Hendrajati, the four themes represent the current situation, where the foundation not only focuses on ways to help people in need, but also addresses the root causes of issues affecting development and the philanthropic humanitarian system.
The congress, he continued, was held to bring out more ideas and notions so as to support the system in Indonesia.
“All this time, we have been working in the field with our friends in both humanitarianism and development. Each has their own targets, but they make as much effort as they can to help people in need,” Tomy said.
With the current situation, there is a need for a forum or activity so that every foundation and individual can sit down together and think about the best plan for Indonesia going forward, as the pandemic has resulted in numerous unprecedented changes and events.
“It is hoped that by coming together, we can dig deep into the ideas about things we can do and achieve collectively. The pandemic has made us learn many things, including strengthening collaboration and synergizing in order to optimize our efforts to support communities.”
Regarding Human Initiative’s 22 years of existence, Tomy said he was hopeful the foundation would be able to help and collaborate with more people in its path forward.
“We are very concerned about how to help those in need, as well as the foundation’s existence so that we can continue to contribute and collaborate.”
Coordinating Human Development and Culture Minister Muhadjir Effendy, who attended the opening ceremony, expressed his hope that the congress could become an annual event for Human Initiative and the humanitarian sector.
“We hope this will become a sustainable agenda later on. We will also require some form of regulation or statute that can amass the national philanthropic powers,” he said, adding that the amassed philanthropic power was vital in regard to Indonesia’s position in the disaster-prone Ring of Fire.
Based on the discussions throughout the day, Human Initiative has drafted a humanitarian agenda from 2022 to 2030, which sets out a number of frameworks that will shape its activities during the period.
The agenda focuses on achieving a new equilibrium based on mutually agreed philosophies and principles, encouraging multi-stakeholder collaboration and engagement, as well as improving local and national actors’ capacities to benefit communities on a regional, national and global level.
