A dream of a school boat

School boats for children in Indonesia

School boats for children in Indonesia
by Burcu Mavis, Research and Data Analyst

New school boat improves community access to schools in Indonesia’s remote islands

Hilmi Ridwan was 28 years old, with four years of volunteering experience in providing education to children in Indonesia, when he travelled to East Nusa Tenggara in 2017, the southernmost province of Indonesia, consisting of 50 small islands. During his trip he bore witness to the great gap between rural and urban areas in terms of education, health and economic opportunities, particularly with regard to children.

Seeing the situation firsthand he could no longer unsee it, so he established Rumah Asuh, an organization with a mission to minimize this gap by bringing educational and wellbeing programs to children living in these remote islands.

Most of the children living there have very limited access to education. Their parents have low-income jobs which results in lack of resources to provide opportunities for their education. In some cases, children also can’t access school due to insufficient transportation facilities in the area. 

For example, children living on Pulau Manda Island, located in East Nusa Tenggara, face some of the biggest challenges in accessing school. Every month families must pay the exorbitant sum of $128 to rent out a fishing boat to transport their children from their home to school, located on another island. The roofless boat takes 20 to 30 minutes to get to school, providing no shade from the scorching sun or shelter from the heavy rain. Sometimes, teachers and students can't even get on the boat, because the fishermen must tend to other duties.

Fishing boat used by children


A dream come true

So the teachers and students had a dream. A dream of a school boat with a roof, dedicated only to taking them to school. Their dream was simple: the teachers wanted to educate the country’s future generations and the students – to learn for a better future. 

In 2020, Rumah Asuh joined the Tadamon Crowdfunding Academy, which is our capacity building program teaching nonprofits the ins and outs of crowdfunding. After completing the academy, they launched and successfully raised over $19,797, and bought five educational boats. As one of the educational boats, they brought to life the dreams of the children and teachers on Pulau Manda Island. In honor of the campaign, their new boat now has the Tadamon logo, which means solidarity.

New educational boat


But they did not stop there. They wanted to touch the lives, hopes and dreams of other children, living in remote areas. 

Since joining the organization in 2021 as program manager, and later as its leader, Asep Nugraha, who specializes in education, has been one of the core people driving the development of Rumah Asuh’s programs. He tells us: “The Crowdfunding Academy has been very helpful for us, improving our knowledge and skills in fundraising. However, crowdfunding is not only about funding, it is also about learning how to communicate your emotional story to others. This Tadamon project gave us the spirit to expand our work to other islands to carry out the same program.”

New Educational Boat in Kundur, Riau Island Province


Crowdfunding as a stepping stone to program expansion

Inspired by their first crowdfunding campaign, Asep and his team launched another to support other communities facing similar problems with access to school. This time, their stop was West Kalimantan, a province consisting of several islands in Southern Indonesia. Here, the students had to travel 90 minutes by boat to get to school. When Asep asked one of the students: “What do you want to study the most when you arrive at school?”, the student answered: “I am not ready to study. I am very tired when I arrive.” 

Traditional boats


This travelling situation is not only exhausting for the children, but is naturally a point of deep concern for parents who worry whether or not the traditional boats used to transport their children are safe. The traditional boats are usually not very sturdy or well-made to sail down a river. What is more, during the rain season, the river flows fast and swells up, making them prone to capsizing, endangering the children onboard. 

Asep and his team listened to the needs and requirements of the teachers and students and they built a brand new boat for them. It has a motor and is designed specifically for river navigation.

The video of the project


Today, the children from West Kalimantan can get to school in 20 minutes, and are cheerful and ready to start their day!

Children with their new boat


After receiving the boat, they met with Asep and his team, who are all passionate about education and shared inspirational stories and advice with the children on how they can achieve their dreams. Asep shares: “We have a role to play in tackling issues related to education in our country. The children need inspirational role models such as teachers and doctors. The teachers should improve the mindsets of students and teach them ways to become a successful person.” 

Asep and the children


Asep remembers that as he was leaving the school, one of the children cried out and said: “Please, don’t go. Stay with me here. I enjoyed spending time with you.” 

After recounting this story, he told us: “Of course, I am so sad everytime I leave them, but there are a lot of issues in education to tackle. In December, we have another project in which we will renovate and paint the schools in this area. The schools here have walls that are dirty and not in a good condition. The students don’t enjoy being in the school classrooms, because the rooms are dark and not pleasant for them.”

Asep’s eyes are filled with hope for the children living in these areas. Let’s see what other inspirational stories await the children of East Nusa Tenggara.

The children at their school


Learn more about Rumah Asuh's work and support them.


The Tadamon Crowdfunding Аcademies are sponsored by the Islamic Solidarity Fund for Development (ISFD), managed by The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) and implemented by United Nations Development program (UNDP).