Ku Kira Ku Sehat, Raising Health Awareness Through A Fun Festival

Celebrating World No-Tobacco Day on May 31, CISDI together with the National Commission for Tobacco Control (NCTC), the University of Indonesia Center for Social Security Studies, and the Puskesmas (Public Health Center) of Kembangan, held a campaign and education for young people and the community in the Ku Kira Ku Sehat festival at Child-friendly Integrated Public Space (RPTRA) Kembangan, West Jakarta.

Several traditional games were played during this event, namely gobak sodor, ranking satu, to guess the style (?) to attract child visitors in the area. A senior Indonesian chef, Sisca Soewitomo, was also present to prepare healthy and nutrient-rich food menus for the family directly. 

Moreover, the West Jakarta government, the Puskesmas of Kembangan, and local community leaders also did health presentations and a smoking cessation consultation booth. These actions were brought to raise awareness to the community about noncommunicable diseases (NCDs), especially among the youth and adults.

“If we look at the data, the number of child smokers jumped from 7.2% in 2013 to 9.1% in 2018, but everything seems to be fine. In fact, if this continues, we will all bear a huge burden in the future, both in terms of health and the economy," said Gatot Suarman Ilyas, Executive Director of CISDI. “The Ku Kira Ku Sehat festival aims to raise public awareness about the negative effects of tobacco consumption and the need for prevention from now on.” he continued.

Besides the traditional games, there were also some educational games for children, such as Lempar Bola (Throwing Ball). In this game, the children were asked to throw a ball into a bottle containing questions and facts about health. They also had their health checked through the Cermin Ku Kira Ku Sehat game (Mirror, I Thought I Was Healthy).

Health knowledge for children is very important, especially regarding the causes of NCDs that can be prevented from an early age. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 71% of deaths are caused by NCDs while in Indonesia it is up to 66% (WHO:2018).

Ku Kira Ku Sehat festival also emphasized the importance of NCDs prevention that is caused by unhealthy lifestyles, such as smoking, high sugar and fat consumption, and lack of physical activity. This festival also focused on providing oversight of regulatory policy to control cigarettes and sugar-sweetened beverages consumption through increasing and implementing excise tax.

Cigarette consumption is, however, unbothered by the pandemic that has been happening since 2019, according to the National Committee on Tobacco Control – NCTC, that 49.8% of smokers made no change to their cigarette consumption. This smoking behavior tends to happen among low-income families, even though the cost of buying cigarettes could have been spent on nutritious food and drinks for their children. Therefore, Ku Kira Kau Sehat festival was hoped to raise public awareness towards a healthy lifestyle as well as contribute to health policy. 

The head of Puskesmas (Public Health Centers) Kembangan District, drg. Leny Ariani said,

“The public is not only given information about the dangers of smoking, but it is time for the community and other elements to carry out real movements in their respective areas to narrow the space for smokers and create a smoke-free home culture.”

Gatot also emphasized on the importance of policy advocacy on preventing consumption of products with health risk. “Currently, we continue to encourage policy makers through excise instruments because the price of cigarettes is still very cheap, you can even buy per stick.”

He also stated the importance of controlling sweetened beverages which are often the cause of diabetes and obesity. “Until today, packaged sugary beverage products have not been subject to excise duty. In fact, this discourse has been issued a few years ago, we really hope that sugary drinks in packaging can be subject to excise duty, as a form of control from the bad effects of these products.” close Gatot.

About CISDI

Center for Indonesia's Strategic Development Initiatives (CISDI): Center for Indonesia's Strategic Development Initiatives (CISDI) is a think tank that promotes evidence-based health policies to realize an empowered, healthy, and prosperous Indonesian society by implementing a healthy paradigm. CISDI conducts research and program management as well as policy advocacy to realize transparent, adequate, and equitable governance, financing, human resources, and health services. Info: https://cisdi.org/id/

About Komnas PT

The National Committee for Tobacco Control (Komnas PT) is a community coalition organization engaged in overcoming the problem of consumption of tobacco products, established on July 27, 1998 in Jakarta, consisting of 23 organizations and individuals, consisting of health professional organizations, community organizations, and groups concerned about the dangers of tobacco products for life, especially for the younger generation and poor families. Info: https://komnaspt.or.id/

About PKJS UI

Center for Social Security Studies, School of Strategic and Global Studies, University of Indonesia (PKJS-UI) is an institution engaged in training, consulting, and research on Social Security broadly including addressing economic and health issues, to contribute to the welfare of the people. Info: https://pkjsui.org/

About Puskesmas Kecamatan Kembangan

Puskesmas Kecamatan Kembangan is a community health center located in Kecamatan Kembangan, West Jakarta. This puskesmas has a vision to become an outstanding and trusted puskesmas that is the pride of DKI Jakarta. Info: https://puskesmaskecamatankembangan.com/