专题2：如何在经济上赋权予原住民 Special Topic 2: How to provide economic empowerment to the Indigenous People?

相信很多人都知道，大部分原住民都住偏乡，以农耕为生；同时，也有许多原住民离乡背井到城镇谋生。幸运的话，他们可以找到福利好的政府组织工作，但大部分原住民只能透过在超市、餐厅或工厂打工赚取生活费。但不论是在偏乡或城镇，他们都面对经济上的挑战。

As it is widely known that most of the Indigenous people are living in the rural areas, with farming and agriculture as their main source of livelihood. At the same time, many among the Indigenous people may have chosen to leave their homeland and move to bigger towns and cities, in search of better living. Some may be lucky to find jobs in the civil sectors where their welfare would be secured; however, the reality is that the bigger majority of them in the cities could only find employment in supermarkets, restaurants, or factories, earning only meagre income, barely enough to cover their own daily expenses. On the whole, whether they remain in the villages or ventured to the cities, the Indigenous people are facing great economic challenges. ​

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🛖​​Economic Challenges of the Rural-based Indigenous –
​External Factors

Why are most of the Indigenous people remain in poverty? Examining the external factors, it’s not hard to see their communities are deprived of the most basic and fundamental necessities, such as, roads, electricity, clean water, internet, education, medical services and supplies, sports and recreation, and others, leading to higher financial burden from the onsets. Most of their basic daily needs have to be sourced from the towns and cities to be delivered into the interior rural areas, on the flip side, their farm and agriculture produces have to travel long and far before they reach the market in the cities. The rural roads – or lack thereof – often put a demanding toll on their vehicles’ condition, and it is always a race against time to keep their produces fresh during the long travels – all these factors, in one way or another, add to the cost of production for the Indigenous. This  has not taken into account many of them are without their own vehicles, and had to be at the mercy of the middlemen. It is, therefore very real that rural Indigenous had to bear a much higher basic living cost compared to the town dwelling folks.

Another contributing factor for the Indigenous people to be mired in poverty is the loss of ownership to their land. Both in name and identity, the Indigenous people are Bumiputra, the children of the lands in our country. However, in reality, their rights have been exploited and their land taken away, what remains is only the sheer status of Bumiputra. Some of the Indigenous sold off their land willingly, either to the government promising to build public infrastructures, or to private companies for agriculture or mining activities, or for the development of housing projects in the area. But there are also times when they choose to sell off the land to meet some personal financial needs, such as, paying off huge wedding ceremony, wake and funeral expenses. Besides, many of the younger generation today are losing interest in farming and agriculture and are also unwilling to manage the land, even if they inherited one from the family.

Many Indigenous lost their land very often are on involuntary basis when the government forcibly purchased their land for development, to build roads, schools, hospitals, or dams. Inevitably, due to the lack of understanding, many of them are also prone to be duped into giving up their land for unjustifiably low price. There are also those who are forced to sell their land to pay off debts. In most cases, when the Indigenous lose their  land, they no longer able to do farming and hence lost their source of livelihood and gradually, their living conditions deteriorated. The other critical and obvious problems of losing their land for the excessive, rapid and unsustainable development, includes land erosion, environmental destructions, water pollution, new social ills and criminal activities in their communities and villages. 

Finally, there are also other factors of uncertainties that added to the financial plights of the Indigenous such as, changes in weather and climate, loss of crops due to natural disaster, pests, or theft, haze, and other changes in the agricultural market etc. Without proper knowledge, prevention and management of these unpredictable events, the Indigenous community will plunge even deeper into poverty.
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🛖​​Economic Challenges of the Rural-based Indigenous –
​Internal Factors

From the analysis of internal factors, lack of knowledge and education are the main contributors to the poverty faced by the indigenous. With only a very small minority among the Indigenous having the opportunity to receive adequate education and training, many of them are lagging behind in how they think and work. This creates an opportunity for some ill-intentioned crooks to take advantage of the Indigenous people, to trick and exploit them for their own gains.

Although some of the Indigenous people do possess huge parcel of land, but due to lack of money and resources, or with their younger generation losing interest in tending the land, many of the lands fall into disarray, taken over by weeds and waste, such is the undesirable sights to behold! And it’s not uncommon for conflicts to happen within families, as most parents do not know how to make a will to properly assign their possessions after their passing, leaving the family land untended or mismanaged, when it could have been golden opportunity for their  children to make money from the land.
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In addition. Negative attitudes towards economic development and their adherence to traditional lifestyles have also contributed to the economic challenges of the Indigenous people.
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🏭​​Economic Challenges of the Urban-based Indigenous

The situations for the Indigenous people who moved into towns and cities is not any better, as they too are often burdened with the challenges of high cost of living. ​They are required to pay for accommodation, loans, utilities, transportation, other daily necessities and sometimes entertainment expenses etc. As most of the urban-based Indigenous do not earn high incomes, it’s almost impossible for them to save money and some may even end up poorer than when they were in the villages.

The cities may offer endless excitement and fun, but there are also all kinds of traps, pitfalls, and temptations. Many city-dwelling Indigenous struggle to resist the lure of enjoyment, often losing control over their spending on entertainment, digital goods, or shopping. Coupled with the lack of self-control and poor money management, many of them find themselves deep in financial troubles in no time. The financial challenges may also bring an unwanted impact on the family lives of the Indigenous. Many of the men left their homes and family in the villages and moved to cities alone with the desire of earning better income, but in the end, they have not only failed to send money home to provide for the family, instead have indulged in entertainment and other ill habits like drinking and partying, and worse of all, some even started new families in the cities.

💡​Some Suggestions on Resolving the Challenges

1. Helping the Indigenous to increase their living standards and income source 
For rural-based Indigenous, we can introduce them to new ideas, technologies, and projects, such as injecting new creativity in their traditional arts and crafts for better marketing, exposing them to more advanced agricultural methods, or teaching them ways to start odourless pig farming etc. For those in the urban areas, we can help them to look for secondary source of income like investing their free time on new skills such as tailoring, baking, or tutoring etc.
 
2. Educating the Indigenous on saving and investment
Logically, the Indigenous people who are Bumiputra should have been wealthier than most non-Bumiputras, as the government has allocated various funding support and schemes to assist them, for example, the Amanah Saham Bumiputera, ABS, an investment fund which is only open for the bumiputras. With a promised return as high as 7-8%, it is better than most equivalent investment schemes for non-bumiputras.
 
3. Teaching the indigenous good land management
Instead of letting their land barren or untended, we can teach them proper land management skills to take care and make good use of the lands they own.
 
4. Exposing the Indigenous to new skills and modern technologies
Exposing the Indigenous people to newer, modern and efficient farming techniques and tools, helping them to learn and understand ways to improve production efficiency and effective use of land to raise the economic returns. 
 
5. Imparting the Indigenous with the importance of tithing
Besides helping them to survive within the worldly economic system, we must also fill them with the knowledge of the Biblical financial system – tithing and offering, teaching them to give God the first-fruits of their labour as they experience God’s faithful blessings and providence.

Economic Empowerment Ministry - Sharing by Brother Zhang

In 2011, Brother Zhang began to enter the rural villages to encourage the indigenous people to cultivate their own food. Those who own land do not have to use money to buy food like urban residents, instead the money saved can be used for other purposes, such as children's education. The cultivated crops can provide food for the whole family, any excess can be sold in exchange for money.

At the same time, Brother Zhang also invited indigenous people from rural areas to become his partners. He taught them to grow organic corn, ginger and Roselle in many villages, and also helped them to sell the products to increase their income, enriching them through such partnerships. 
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 As he helped the villagers to increase their income through learning new farming skills and technologies, he also hopes that they may learn to trust God through their  farming experience.
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Economic Empowerment Ministry Sharing by Bishop James Wong Chong Leong

In Basel Church, the Indigenous People Ministry involving in economic empowerment is a vital part of our work. According to national statistics, 25.3 percent of the  poor are from the state of Sabah, and the majority of these people are distributed across different interior areas, but one of the places with the highest concentration of  poor is around Kudat in the northern part of Sabah.

While we are happy to see the Indigenous are considerably open to the Gospel, but besides evangelism, the Basel Church feel that there are so much more for us to do! When the number of Indigenous Christians are added to us, there is also a greater need for building more churches and providing for the pastors. Yet we know that it is never a good plan for the Indigenous Church to be dependent on the urban churches interminably for their financial needs, hence after a period of time serving the Indigenous, the Basel Church, in the hope of helping the rural Indigenous communities to be self-sufficient, started the economic empowerment plans for them.

We established a farm in Membakut, called “The Basel Garden”. Planted in the farm are all kinds of fruits, including durian, coconut, avocado, pineapple, and more. The Garden is also an agriculture training centre, in addition to a training institution for Indigenous pastors and leaders, in partnership with Sabah Theological Seminary (STS). There are plans to build some hostels attached to the Garden, so that students from STS may stay at the farm to learn about farming knowledge and skills during their breaks. We hope that in the future, when the Indigenous leaders return to serve their communities upon completion of their theological training, they may also be equipped with the skills to bring development to their lands, and perhaps even bring economic transformation to the communities.

There is also a similar farm in Kudat, called “The Basel Farm”. Just like the other farm, this is also a plantation and training centre. The Indigenous people can learn about organic corn faming, odourless pig rearing, and tilapia fish farming in this Farm. We hope that through such economic empowerment projects and ministries, we can bring hope to the Indigenous people struggling with poverty, as well as to help the rural churches to be strong and sustainable in providing for their own needs.

Message Shared by Pastor Lam Kee Hing
​Written by Jowee Lee
​Translated by Earnest Chiam
​Checked by  Deborah Wong

🛖​​偏乡原住民的经济挑战——外在因素

为什么大部分原住民仍处于贫穷的状态？从外在因素分析，他们极度缺乏基础设施，包括：道路、电源、净水、互联网、教育、医疗和体育等，导致生活成本增高。很多生活必需品皆是须要从遥远的城镇运送到偏乡，自家耕种的农作物也须送到城镇售卖。偏乡道路缺乏导致车子磨损，加上长时间的运送让易腐烂农作物变质，变相地加重销售成本，更遑论没有车子的原住民还需要中间人的协助。因此，偏乡原住民的生活成本往往比城市来得高。

导致原住民变穷的因素也包含失去土地拥有权。虽然原住民在我国的身份是土地之子（马来文：Bumiputra），但却有名无实，其原因包括自愿性土地出售以及非自愿性土地出售。普遍上，原住民出售土地无非是为了让政府建造公共设施，或让私人机构发展种植园、采矿业与建筑房屋等。但有时，因个人的社会需求，原住民也会考虑出售自己的土地以摆设庞大婚宴或举办大型丧礼。另外，年轻一代原住民开始对农业不感兴趣，即便继承了土地，也不会去管理和经营。

从非自愿性土地出售的角度来看，政府组织会为了建设道路、学校、医院或水坝等设施，强制性要求原住民出售土地。同时，许多原住民不具有这方面的知识，所以他们很容易就遭受有心人士欺骗，以低价格出售及转让土地权。为了偿还庞大债务，有些原住民也被逼出售自己的土地。没有了土地，原住民就不能耕种，他们开始失去收入的来源，渐渐地也失去生存的条件。此外，已转让的土地被快速开发，无形中也造成土地侵蚀、环境破坏、水源污染和新犯罪问题出现。
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最后，一些不确定因素也会导致原住民变穷，比如气候变化、农作物受灾减产、害虫袭击、偷窃、烟霾和农作物价格起伏不定等。若他们不懂得处理或预防突如其来的问题，他们将陷入更穷苦的光景。

🛖​​偏乡原住民的经济挑战——内在因素

从内在因素分析，缺乏知识教育是导致原住民贫穷的原因之一。只有少数的原住民有机会接受教育和知识装备，因此他们无论在思想或处事上都还停留在过去。有心人士趁虚而入，借此欺骗和占他们便宜。

虽然有些原住民拥有大片土地，但资金不足、没有劳工，亦或是年轻一代原住民对农耕不感兴趣等因素，导致很多土地都长满杂草，无人管理。这非常可惜！此外，家庭成员之间意见不和，父母不懂得立遗嘱，没有清楚传达土地分配意愿，也造成土地没办法妥善使用和发展，荒置了“增加收入”的机会。
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除此之外，对经济发展的消极态度，并坚持使用传统方式生活也增加了他们的经济挑战。

🏭​城镇原住民的经济挑战

对于搬迁到城镇生活的原住民，他们同样也面对生活成本高的挑战。其主要的生活消费包括：房屋资金、贷款、水电费、交通费、伙食费、日常开销和娱乐消费等。然而，大部分到城镇求职的原住民收入都不高。尽管他们非常努力，但有些还是存不到钱，甚至比起过去在偏乡生活更贫困。
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城镇是个丰富及多彩的地方，具有各种好玩的景点，同时也存在着各种试探。在城镇生活的原住民难以把控娱乐、电子器材或逛街购物等消费诱惑。若他们又缺乏自律和财务管理的能力，将加速他们经济陷困。经济挑战也影响原住民的家庭问题，许多丈夫把家人留下独自到城镇工作。他不但没有寄回家用，反而花钱消费在酒精或其他娱乐生活，甚至还在城镇开始了新家庭。

💡​建议的解决方法

1.   帮助原住民提高收入来源和收入水平
对于偏乡的原住民，我们可以向他们介绍新主意、新科技和新计划，比如：在手工艺品上的创新主意、更好的农耕技巧或开始养殖无味猪。至于城镇的原住民，我们可以挑战他们在正职以外的时间兼职，透过裁缝、烘培或补习等，赚取更多钱。

2.   教导原住民如何储蓄和投资
其实原住民应该比许多非土著更富有，因为我国有好些基金能够帮助他们，比如土著信托基金（Amanah Saham Bumiputera，简称ASB）可享有7-8%利息，比非土著国民高。

3.   教导原住民如何善用土地
与其放任土地杂草生长，我们可以教导原住民管理及善用目前拥有的土地。

4.   教导原住民新技能或介绍新科技
当我们向他们介绍新技能或新科技，他们就不会再用旧模式农耕。这可以帮助他们增加收入。

5.   教导什一奉献的重要性
​除了帮助原住民在世界的经济系统生存，也要教导他们圣经原则的什一奉献，学习将初熟的果子献上，经历上帝信实的供应。

经济赋能事工分享——张德源弟兄

2011年，张德源弟兄开始进到偏乡鼓励原住民耕种自己的食物。拥有土地的原住民大可不必像城镇居民那般，用钱购买粮食，反之将金钱省下挪作他用，如孩子的教育费。当农作物能够供应全家粮食，他们便可将余下农作物拿出去卖，赚取金钱。
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同时，张弟兄也邀请偏乡的原住民成为伙伴，他在多个乡村教导他们种植有机玉蜀黍、姜、洛神花，再协助他们售卖，增加偏乡原住民的收入。透过有机农业增加他们的收入并提升种植技术的同时，也希望他们学习在种植过程种依靠上帝。

​经济赋能事工分享——黄忠良会督

在巴色会的原住民事工当中，经济赋能是非常关键的部分。根据数据显示，沙巴州占了我国贫穷数据中的25.3分比。这些贫穷的人民多数分布在内陆，特别集中在沙巴北部的古达（Kudat）一带。

原住民对于福音的接受度还算高，但除了传福音，巴色会觉得还需要做得更多。当越来越多原住民信主后，建立教会和供应牧者的需要也因此增加。长期在金钱上依赖城市教会并非长久之计。巴色会服事原住民一段时间后，便开始期待偏乡原住民可以在经济上自给自足，因此就有了经济赋能（Economic Empowerment）计划。

巴色会在王麻谷（Membakut）设立了一个农场，名叫“巴色会果园（The Basel Garden）” 。里面种植了许多水果，如：榴莲、椰子、鳄梨和黄梨等。这也是一间农耕培训中心，与沙巴神学院配搭，培训原住民成为教会牧者和教会领袖。未来，巴色会果园计划设立宿舍，让沙巴神学院学生在假期的时候留宿并学习种植技能。以致当这些已接受神学装备的原住民再次回到自己的乡村牧养时，能以不同的眼光看待自己的土地，甚至衍生至社区经济发展。
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巴色会在古达（Kudat）也设立了“巴色会农场（The Basel Farm）”，是另一间农耕培训中心。原住民透过培训，学习种植有机玉蜀黍、养殖无味猪和罗非鱼。盼望这样的经济赋能事工可以为贫困的原住民带来希望，让偏乡的原住民教会达到自供自养。

主讲：林其兴传道
摘录：李倩颖姐妹