Introducing the Spirit of Ngayah in Comparative Study on Cooperatives & Business Management 2025

_{by M. A. Indira Prameswari}

That afternoon, Mama Ros sat at the edge of her stilt house’s terrace, waiting for the fishers of Jikotamo Village to return. From a distance, the sound of boat engines broke the village’s silence. It signaled the fishers’ return from the Maluku Sea, just north of Obi Island, North Maluku.

When the fishers landed with yellowfin tuna the size of adult men, Rosmina — known as Mama Ros — quickly rose from her seat to handle the fish sales.

“Sixty up!” shouted Mama Ros to the collector, indicating a fish weighing 60 kilograms. The price of a 60-kilogram fish was enough to buy a smartphone. The fishers displayed their catch along the planks of the small vessel’s deck for cleaning and freezing.

“The men catch the fish, and we, the women, wait here to sell them,” said Mama Ros. The village’s tuna fishing culture clearly divides labor by gender. Men handle the fishing, while women manage household matters. “If there’s no fishing, we women stay at home,” she explained.

However, Mama Ros took on more roles than most women. In addition to serving as her family’s accountant, she also helped manage the finances of the Tribakti Tuna Mandiri Cooperative, run by local fish collectors and fishing families. In this small village, almost every fisher was related by blood, including all cooperative members, who came from fishing families.

“It’s very difficult to manage the cooperative members because they’re all stubborn, always wanting to oppose (pang malawang),” said Mama Ros. “And because of that, problems in the cooperative become hard to solve because everyone is selfish,” her smile faded.

When Members Overlook Business Progress

As a member of the Tribakti Tuna Mandiri Cooperative, Mama Ros assists in running a basic goods business, much like a village convenience store, with an annual turnover reaching hundreds of millions of rupiah. Despite this substantial turnover, she and other managers struggle because not all members actively contribute to building the business.

“When it comes to profit-sharing (SHU), everyone shows up. But when it’s about organizing the goods, operations, or being asked to attend meetings, no one wants to come,” said Mama Ros.

Every day, she works with other members to manage the cooperative. “We hope everyone will care equally about advancing this business,” she said.

MDPI recognizes this issue, realizing that not all members can function optimally. The problem arises not only from a lack of concern but also from limited organizational skills. Only a few individuals possess expertise in financial bookkeeping, logistics, and work shift distribution.

To address these challenges, MDPI initiated a comparative study for cooperative members to learn from a more advanced cooperative in Bali. Mama Ros, along with Tribakti Tuna Mandiri Cooperative supervisor Mr. La Kuku and ten others from five provinces within MDPI’s working area, participated in the study.

Ngayah: Learning a Balinese Local Value That Emphasizes Community Services

The journey from Obi to Bali took two days. Mama Ros and La Kuku departed from their village on Monday, February 17, 2025, stopping for two days in Ternate City before continuing by air to Bali. They conducted the comparative study on February 21, 2025.

Despite the long trip, both participants remained enthusiastic. They compared their village’s store to the convenience store managed by the SIDI Cooperative. “Here, all operations are computerized. In the village, we still record transactions and inventory manually,” said Mama Ros after speaking with the SIDI Cooperative’s staff.

Established in 1951 in Denpasar City, the SIDI Cooperative has experienced cycles of success and failure. According to its Chairman, Nyoman Mudana, the cooperative’s longevity owes much to the ngayah spirit preserved by its members. In Balinese, ngayah means ‘voluntary work’ — a value closely related to the cooperative’s principle of mutual cooperation.

“What sets a cooperative business apart from others is the commitment to voluntary work. The managers are not paid for running the business — that’s the risk. But as long as the business grows and all members receive profit-sharing fairly and equitably, it’s worth it,” Mudana explained.

Strengthening Cooperative Management and Member Engagement

Participants not only revisited the cooperative spirit rooted in volunteerism and cooperation but also learned to map out technical and legal requirements for cooperative management. The study covered topics like market potential mapping, business innovation, member management skills, and legalizing the business.

“The purpose of this activity is to provide a platform for learning about the technical and legal aspects of running a business. Group businesses are challenging and require learning interpersonal skills to overcome internal conflicts, which often become the main issue, such as in Jikotamo,” said MDPI FCO Lead Nilam Ratnawati.

Both Mama Ros and La Kuku acknowledged the valuable lessons they gained to share with fellow cooperative members, especially those supervisors who had remained inactive for a long time. “Inshaa Allah, we will discuss this with the fishers in the village so there will be no more messy finances and conflicts between members,” concluded Mama Ros.