The Covid-19 pandemic has affected people and organizations in its own way. As an organization, it is not easy for us to decide any formulations of our work amidst uncertainty. We did receive assistance, such as technical assistance to make changes in planning and budgeting, as this uncertain situation is completely new to us.
However, we keep finding some difficulties with these successive changes. We still have to project the factors in the following years, related to whether this year’s achievements can or cannot be compensated. This problem arises because the factors associated with the pandemic are uncertain. Control over these factors, such as vaccination, ending restriction etc., is not with us.
After all, our activities, whether related to institutional strengthening or program implementation, are based on face-to-face meetings and networking that require high mobility. We are still trying to replace it with online meetings. However, as expected, this method does not generate an effective process. Many factors cause this ineffectiveness, ranging from partner culture to technical factors such as unstable and unequal internet access.
Even though it seems like a dead-end, we still try to focus on things that we can control. These controllable variables become our driven factors to keep generating enthusiasm and positive results. We still make some important achievements in 2020, which can be seen in this report.
In terms of institutional capacity, for example, we now officially have a certified data server management professional. Based on our experience, the need for this expertise is important whenever we encourage data integration in the regions.
We also maintain our commitment to digital literacy, especially digital security for women in rural areas. In fact, pandemic has made digital literacy for rural women even more essential.
During 2020, some progress related to actualizing one data from village in several regions have been achieved. We imagine, even believe, that if data integration has been actualized, tackling the pandemic crises will be much more effective. Problems like the difficulty of distributing aid, tracking patients to administering vaccines will be more synchronized and organized. This pandemic should be a momentous period, for parties related to data management in this country, to seriously change their paradigm and policies.
Like some citizens of the world, obeying health protocols causes adversity for us to maintain our hope, strength, and stamina. Mental endurance is needed during the process. It is mainly because the personal situation faced by each staff and partner is certainly different. So far, we have been encouraging open, honest, and mutually respectful communication to solve this problem. In addition, we also avoid judgmental, full of assumption and pretentious communication, let alone consider oneself the most righteous and holy.
Please take delight in reading this report. We believe, especially in this never-ending pandemic, what we need is mutual trust, mutual strengthening, respect, and synergy. Judgment and arrogance, especially filled with the spirit of “as long as I am safe”, do not help at all at this time.
Along with this uncertain time, we like to keep believing the excerpt of a song “You’ll Never Walk Alone”, at the end of the storm there’s a golden sky.[]