Community Empowerment Strategy in Efforts to Improve Gampoeng Open Defecation Free Through the Meuseuraya Tradition in Southwest Aceh Regency

Sanitation is an effort to control environmental factors that can cause adverse effects on health. Aceh Province is included in the Province Open Defecation Free (ODF) list. Only 3 out of 23 regencies/cities have ODF. Southwest Aceh Regency (Abdya) is one of the regencies with high rates of open defecation, with only 18 out of 152 ODF villages. The general objective of this study is to design a community empowerment strategy to improve ODF villages through a traditional approach. Thank you. The specific objective is to identify the causes of open defecation in the Abdya community and seek solutions to the problem. Research using a qualitative approach, Participatory Action Research design (PAR). The informants and empowerment participants in this study were 22 people. The research data were collected qualitatively through in-depth interviews, Focus Group Discussion (FGD), self-reports, and participant observation. Thematic data analysis using Nvivo. The results of this study indicate that the causes of open defecation in the community are poor economic conditions, minimal knowledge, expensive toilet costs, and insufficient support from village officials. The results of the FGD exploration that can attract residents to open defecation in building toilets include education through IEC, Meuseraya Tradition, while increasing the support of Gampoeng officials through IEC, deliberation, and regulation. Actions carried out on residents with IEC, forming a BSSG working group, and implementation, there was an increase of 8 households that had used healthy toilets. Novelty: This research is a community empowerment strategy through an approach. This begins with community IEC, the establishment of a Community-Based Social Welfare Group (BSSG), and training for village officials. Suggestions should be given to determine the extent of the government's commitment to utilizing local traditions to increase ownership of healthy latrines in Abdya.