PEMBERDAYAAN PEREMPUAN DALAM MENINGKATKAN NILAI TAMBAH HASIL LAUT MELALUI PROGRAM BAHARI SEMBILANG MANDIRI DI KABUPATEN BANYUASIN.

The Bahari Sembilang Mandiri Program (BERLARI) is an integrated community empowerment program to resolve problems faced by coastal communities around the Berbak Sembilang National Park (TNBS) which is supported by PT Kilang Pertamina International (KPI) Refinery Unit III Plaju. This program aims to empower communities and improve economic conditions by utilizing available marine resources. One way to improve the marine economy is to empower women to innovate the processing of marine fish into salted fish in Sembilang Hamlet, Sungsang IV Village, Banyuasin Regency. The program's background is that the community solely depends on fresh marine products for their livelihood, while salted fish, a marine processed product with a high selling value, enjoys widespread marketability throughout Indonesia. The purpose of this study is to describe the process of empowering women in the 3T area (underdeveloped, outermost, and remote) and to analyze the added value of salted fish processing carried out by women's groups in the Bahari Sembilang Mandiri program. The research method used is descriptive qualitative with participatory observation data collection techniques, field notes, and indepth interviews with informants. The data analysis used is based on interactive qualitative techniques and the Hayami method. The results of this study indicate that the innovation program of marine products into salted fish can provide economic and social benefits for coastal communities, especially women. In addition to increasing income, this program can also encourage the creation of new jobs, strengthen food security, and support local economic development. Processing marine fish into salted fish generates an added value of 48%. Making salted fish has a lot of added value. It can increase the economic value of products by raising market selling prices and extending their shelf life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]