The Development Economics Study Program, Faculty of Economics and Business, UPN “Veteran” Yogyakarta has demonstrated an outstanding commitment to the implementation of the Tri Dharma of Higher Education, particularly in the pillar of Community Service, by carrying out 140 community engagement activities during the 2022–2025 period. This achievement reflects the strong dedication of the program’s faculty members in applying their expertise in development economics to provide practical solutions to challenges faced by communities, local governments, micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), as well as public and private institutions. These activities include socialization programs, training, workshops, intensive mentoring, preparation of strategic planning documents, technical studies, and scientific publications that significantly contribute to sustainable economic development across various regions in Indonesia.

In the areas of public asset governance, fiscal policy, and labor, faculty members have actively contributed through various strategic initiatives. Community service in asset governance includes workshops on asset administration for plantation and government sectors, asset optimization, auction methods, and disposal of state-owned enterprise assets, as well as evaluation of government performance accountability. In fiscal policy, contributions include optimizing village-owned revenue, strengthening government performance accountability systems, and assessing potential losses in local tax revenues. In the labor sector, the program plays a strategic role through the dissemination of minimum wage policies at district and provincial levels, workforce character development based on the cultural values of the Special Region of Yogyakarta, calculation of alpha coefficients in minimum wage formulation, decent living needs surveys, and the preparation of regional manpower plans that support equitable and data-driven labor policies.

Community economic empowerment and MSME development constitute a major focus of the program’s engagement activities, with a series of sustainable initiatives that generate tangible impacts. Engagement with the Soponyono Joint Business Group in Sumberharjo Village includes strengthening business sustainability through digital marketing education, adoption of technology and financial management, business licensing and product branding development, as well as digital marketing optimization and product diversification. Engagement with the Umbul Makmur Women Farmers Group includes entrepreneurship motivation, training in low-caffeine coffee production using salak fruit seeds, and capacity building through marketing system optimization. Engagement with other MSMEs includes business plan development training, human resource capacity strengthening, competitiveness enhancement through innovation and creativity, digital promotion mentoring, and assistance for artisans in digital transformation to expand domestic and international markets.

In the areas of financial literacy, financial inclusion, and digital economy development, faculty members contribute through various outreach and training programs. These include education on the use and management of the Indonesian rupiah, digital financial literacy, the impact of online lending on debtor information systems, promotion of Indonesia’s Quick Response Code (QRIS) and digital marketing for MSMEs, banking services in the digital era, banking liquidity management, as well as awareness programs on illegal online lending and online gambling. These initiatives are essential for improving public financial literacy, protecting communities from illegal financial practices, and promoting safe and responsible digital financial inclusion. In the digital economy domain, activities include the development of community-based reusable product management information systems, donation-based platforms, MSME development in the digital era, digital marketing transformation, and training on appropriate digital technologies.

Community service in regional development planning, investment, and poverty alleviation highlights the program’s strategic role in supporting local governments in formulating data-driven and participatory policies. Development planning activities include village development deliberations, exploration of cultural potential and local wisdom to promote culturally independent villages, preparation of regional medium-term development plans, regional manpower planning documents, poverty reduction strategies, and creative economy development planning. In the investment sector, activities include feasibility studies of investment-ready projects, development of regional investment potential maps, and investment mapping analyses that assist local governments in identifying opportunities and accelerating economic growth. In poverty alleviation, contributions include optimizing the use of special autonomy funds, developing targeted poverty alleviation models, optimizing the use of social welfare indices for identifying extreme poverty, and conducting studies on social safety nets and household consumption.

The fields of agriculture, food security, tourism, as well as research methodology and data analysis, also form key areas of contribution. Activities in agriculture and food security include empowering women farmers through training in low-caffeine coffee production, utilizing agricultural waqf for Islamic boarding school economic empowerment, optimizing home yard utilization, converting duck farm waste into economically valuable products, discussions on staple food availability before Ramadan, empowering rural women through integrated agricultural programs, and using recycled gallon containers as organic fertilizer fermenters. In tourism, activities include studies on integrated ticketing systems at coastal tourism destinations, analysis of potential local tax revenue losses due to heritage management policies, and tourism village empowerment. In research methodology, contributions include time series forecasting modeling, introduction to statistics and secondary data utilization, data analysis enhancement using software, workshops on national socio-economic survey results, Statistics Corner activities, regional budget data analysis training, and transforming economic data into strategic insights.

All these community engagement activities involve intensive collaboration with a wide range of stakeholders, including local governments across regions such as Sleman, Bantul, Gunungkidul, Kulon Progo, Pacitan, Berau, East Kutai, Pesisir Selatan, Magelang City, and Yogyakarta City; the provincial government of the Special Region of Yogyakarta; national institutions such as Badan Pusat Statistik and Bank Indonesia; state-owned enterprises; educational institutions; cooperatives; joint business groups; women farmer groups; MSMEs across manufacturing, culinary, craft, and service sectors; and community groups in various villages. The outputs of these activities extend beyond outreach and training to include scientific publications in journals and conference proceedings documenting best practices. This high level of community service productivity demonstrates that the Development Economics Study Program at UPN “Veteran” Yogyakarta has a strong commitment to applying development economics knowledge for the benefit of society and has established itself as a trusted development partner in promoting sustainable, inclusive, and equitable economic development in Indonesia.

Community Service Activities of Lecturers

Community Service Journal (Jurnal Abdimas)

List of Community Service (PkM) Activities by Lecturers of the Development Economics Study Program, UPN “Veteran” Yogyakarta