Community Transformation through Empowerment-Based Stunting Risk Reduction: A Case Study of the Rumah Gemilang Innovation in Selumit Pantai, Tarakan City
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.64670/jmei.v2i1.146Keywords:
Community Empowerment , Stunting Prevention, Community Transformation, Community ParticipationAbstract
Stunting prevention requires not only nutritional interventions and health services but also the transformation of communities from passive beneficiaries into active agents of change. This study aims to analyze the process of community transformation from object to subject in stunting risk reduction through the Rumah Gemilang Innovation in Selumit Pantai, Tarakan City. The study used a qualitative case study design conducted from April to July 2026. Data were collected through observation, semi-structured interviews with purposively selected program stakeholders and Posyandu cadres, and document analysis. The analysis followed an interactive process of data reduction, data display, and conclusion drawing, with community empowerment as the primary analytical perspective and Critical Pedagogy, Arnstein’s participation framework, and Edward III’s implementation perspective used as complementary lenses. The findings indicate four interconnected stages of transformation: (1) the community as an object of intervention, (2) development of critical consciousness, (3) increased community participation, and (4) the community as an empowered subject. Nutritional assistance initially functioned as an entry point for building trust and improving access to health services. Subsequent nutrition education, First 1,000 Days of Life (1,000 HPK) activities, Nutrition Awareness Ambassadors, complementary feeding menu competitions, Aksi Bergizi, and cadre strengthening expanded community knowledge and participation. The decline in children identified as being at risk of stunting from 100 in 2022 to 43 in 2025 occurred alongside these interventions, but the change cannot be attributed to the program alone. The study contributes a process-oriented account of empowerment in a corporate-supported community health initiative and shows that assistance is more sustainable when it is linked to learning, participation, and transfer of implementation roles to community actors.
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