PTBA's EcoGrow Mom: A Real-Life Appearance of Urban Farming-Based Women's Empowerment in Tanjung Karangan

Tanjung Karangan, February 26, 2026 - PT Bukit Asam (Persero) Tbk continues to demonstrate its commitment to promoting community empowerment through the EcoGrow Mom Mentorship Program. This program is an expansion of the nursery activities previously initiated by PTBA through Siba Pembibitan in Tanjung Karangan Village.

Initially, Siba Pembibitan only mentored low-income women, including former PETI workers, to transition to productive businesses such as hardwood and fruit tree nurseries. From this mentorship process, the Utun Makmur Women's Farmers Group (KWT) was established in early 2025 as a platform for empowering village women.

Then, in late 2025, PTBA, through the EcoGrow Mom Program, expanded its mentorship to focus not only on tree nurseries for sale but also on cultivating kitchen crops to strengthen family food security.
Corporate Secretary Division Head Eko Prayitno explained that this program encourages the use of household waste, such as used sacks, as planting media, and the optimization of home gardens and village land through urban farming and home-based farming approaches.

"This program aims to increase the capacity of village women by actively involving housewives, former PETI workers, and low-income communities in sustainable agricultural activities," Eko explained.
Eko added that the EcoGrow Mom Mentoring Program also promotes family and village food security, optimizes productive land, develops environmentally friendly nurseries, and builds a household-based circular economy by processing waste into agricultural resources.

With a collaborative and sustainable approach, PTBA hopes the EcoGrow Mom Program will open new economic opportunities, strengthen group solidarity, and emphasize the role of women as the driving force behind empowered and independent village development.

The Head of the Utun Makmur KWT, Tuti, expressed her appreciation for the support provided by PTBA through the EcoGrow Mom Mentoring Program.

"I express my deepest gratitude to PTBA for the EcoGrow Mom program, which has been incredibly beneficial. With the formation of this KWT, we have learned a lot, both in the fields of agriculture and social sciences," she explained.
Tuti admitted that since the program began, residents have interacted and learned together more frequently. This has been a source of great comfort for her amidst her busy schedule as a housewife.

"We've also learned how to garden and utilize our respective home environments. Since joining, our yards have been neatly landscaped and filled with vegetable plants. Besides being for our own consumption, some of the vegetables can be shared with others and even have significant economic value. Thank you to the PTBA Sustainability Team, keep moving forward, PTBA," Tuti continued.

The detailed stages of the EcoGrow Mom program include initial development in the form of socialization and basic training in nursery management and household waste utilization; production of approximately 5,000 vegetable seedlings using simple media; utilization of approximately 1 hectare of village land and members' yards for urban farming activities; and ongoing mentoring and monitoring by PTBA, along with internal and external facilitators.