Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology ISSN: 2576-8484 Vol. 9, No. 6, 1145-1159 2025 Publisher: Learning Gate DOI: 10.55214/25768484.v9i6.8055 © 2025 by the authors; licensee Learning Gate © 2025 by the authors; licensee Learning Gate History: Received: 31 March 2025; Revised: 20 May 2025; Accepted: 23 May 2025; Published: 14 June 2025 * Correspondence: dokumen.rofinus@gmail.com The role of human resource management in improving food security and nutrition toward reducing stunting in Ngada district Rofinus Neto Wuli1*, Rosalia Alexandria De Rosari2 1,2Agrotechnology Study Program, Flores Bajawa Agricultural College, Indonesia; dokumen.rofinus@gmail.com (R.N.W.) delitaderosari26@gmail.com (R.A.D.R.). Abstract: Food security and nutrition are crucial issues that have a direct impact on people's welfare, especially concerning children's health, such as stunting. Stunting, which is a condition of growth failure in children due to chronic malnutrition, is one of the main indicators of nutritional problems that need serious attention in Indonesia. This study aims to analyze the role of human resource management in strengthening food security and nutrition to reduce stunting in Ngada Regency. The method used in this research is qualitative, with data collection techniques through literature study, where data is collected by compiling various relevant literature sources into appropriate topics and documents for the purposes of the research proposal. The results show that the role of human resources is crucial in creating a superior agricultural sector to improve food security and nutrition, which in turn reduces the stunting rate in Ngada Regency. Although there is currently a decrease in the stunting rate in Ngada Regency from 2021 to February 2024, this problem still requires serious handling. However, the welfare of farmers in Ngada Regency is still relatively low due to the inadequate quality of farmers' human resources. Therefore, efforts are needed to improve human resource management, such as through enhancing the quality of education and training in agriculture, increasing farmers' motivation and welfare, empowering farmer organizations through education and extension, and optimizing cooperation with various parties. Keywords: Agriculture, Food security, Human resource management, Nutrition, Stunting. 1. Introduction Stunting is a state of malnutrition associated with past nutrient inadequacies and is therefore a chronic nutritional problem. Stunting is still a common global problem in children under 5 years old. Stunting is a lack of height for age, characterized by delayed growth resulting in failure to reach normal height for the child's age. Stunting can cause short-term and long-term impacts. Short-term impacts include increased mortality and morbidity while long-term impacts include short stature, decreased reproductive health, decreased learning capacity, and increased non-communicable diseases. Ultimately stunting has a short- term impact across generations. Indonesia ranks 5th in the world with a high prevalence of stunting at 7.5 million children under five. According to the 2013 Basic Health Research, the prevalence of stunting was 37.2%, which increased compared to 2010 (35.6%) and 2007 (36.8%). The prevalence of stunting in Indonesia is higher than in other countries in Southeast Asia, such as Myanmar (35%), Vietnam (23%), and Thailand (16%). Early childhood stunting in 2020 has increased when compared to 2019. The number of children affected by stunting in 2019 was 238 children while the number of children in Bajawa Sub-district, Ngada Regency affected by stunting in 2020 was 356 children, meaning that the number of stunting children in 2020 Bajawa Sub-district increased by 18 children with details of 58 children from the Surisina Health Center, 189 children from the Bajawa City Health Center and 109 children from the 1146 Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology ISSN: 2576-8484 Vol. 9, No. 6: 1145-1159, 2025 DOI: 10.55214/25768484.v9i6.8055 © 2025 by the authors; licensee Learning Gate Langa Health Center. Kelurahan Trikora is the village with the least number of stunted children with 1 child while Beiwali Village is the village with the most stunted children with 46 children. Thus, it can be concluded that the number of stunted children in Bajawa Sub-district in 2020 has increased when compared to 2019 [1]. The increase in the prevalence of stunting can be caused by many factors including household and community factors. Household factors can include food insecurity, inadequate sanitation, insufficient water availability, and low education of caregivers in the household. Meanwhile, community factors can include health services, economic status, income, and water and sanitation infrastructure. Food is the main basic need for humans to survive. Household food security refers to the group's ability to fulfill access to food that is sufficient both economically and physically, safe and nutritious. Food security is the condition of food sufficiency and food access for everyone [2]. Low household food security (food insecurity) can lead to reduced intake of nutrients needed for child growth. Paudel's study in Nepal showed that food security is an important risk factor for stunting. Prof. Dr. Jamhari Hadipranoto, Professor of the Faculty of Agriculture, Gadjah Mada University in Pambudi and Djawahir [2] said: “Currently our nutritional problems are double, some are lack of calories and some are excess calories, even the latest data released by the National Widyakarya of Food and Nutrition shows Indonesia's stunting status, the stunting condition is still high”. Global Food Security Index (GFSI) data shows that Indonesia's food security index (59.2) in 2021 is still below Singapore's (77.4), Malaysia (70.1), Thailand (64.5), Vietnam (61.1), and the Philippines (60). Singapore is at 77.4 and is the highest in Southeast Asia [2]. Indonesia's low food security index cannot be separated from the quality of human resources (HR) in agriculture. To produce qualified and reliable farmers, who can make leaps of progress to compete in producing superior and competitive agricultural products, President Joko Widodo's administration through the Indonesian Ministry of Agriculture feels the need to reverse the qualifications of farmers who are currently considered less educated and skilled to become farmers who are educated, skilled, professional and able to implement agricultural modernization [3]. The agricultural sector plays a very important role in the Indonesian economy, and agriculture has become a top priority in development. When the new order of agriculture became a development goal, it became the government's main concern in the current era. Farmers are the most populous livelihood in Indonesia [4]. There is a problem that agriculture reduces poverty, but farmers remain poor. According to Warto in Yacoub and Mutiaradina [5] as a country with a relatively large area with promising agricultural land, villagers living in rural areas should live prosperously. However, in reality, this has never been the case because most of the people living in rural areas, especially farmers/farm laborers, are still poor. Poverty is closely related to welfare, and the poor are not prosperous. Farmer income is one of the benchmarks for measuring farmer welfare, a benchmark for agricultural development [6]. Therefore, the agricultural system must be further improved, this is to improve the welfare of the farming community. This goal will be realized if there is an overhaul of the vocational education and training system by reorienting vocational education and training towards demand-driven supported by the implementation of effective extension in line with the development of technological innovation and market orientation [7]. The aims and objectives of this research are to reveal the factors that influence the low interest of the workforce to work in the agricultural sector, including agricultural graduates; factors that cause Indonesia's food security index at the world level to be low; how the role of the family is very important for stunting prevention [8]; how to process local food products into nutritious food for children; and factors that can be used as strengths in improving Human Resources for the realization of food security and nutrition which have an impact on reducing stunting. 1147 Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology ISSN: 2576-8484 Vol. 9, No. 6: 1145-1159, 2025 DOI: 10.55214/25768484.v9i6.8055 © 2025 by the authors; licensee Learning Gate 2. Research Methods This research uses qualitative methods, which aim to explore and provide an in-depth understanding of real problems. In contrast to quantitative methods that focus on collecting numerical data or implementing interventions, qualitative research is more oriented toward exploring phenomena [9]. The data collection technique used was a literature study, where researchers accessed previous research results through online publications, journals, and other scientific sources, as well as presentations from the Ngada Regency Government in the Rembuk Stunting Conference 3 meeting that discussed multi-stakeholder commitment to accelerate stunting reduction in Ngada [7]. According to Wuli [7] a literature review is a written summary that presents theories and information from journal articles, books, and other documents, both from the past and the present. This review also organizes the literature into topics that are relevant to research needs. Then after the data is collected the data analysis process begins with data reduction, where irrelevant or redundant information is filtered out, so that the researcher can focus on the important points. After that, the remaining data is presented in a more structured and understandable way. The final step is to draw conclusions based on the data analysis that has been carried out, which aims to answer the research objectives or questions clearly and in-depth. 3. Results and Discussion Stunting is a nutritional status based on the PB/U or TB/U index where in the anthropometric standard of child nutritional status assessment, the measurement results are at the threshold (Z-Score) of <-2 SD up to -3 SD (short/stunted) and <-3 SD (very short / severely stunted). Stunting is a chronic malnutrition problem caused by insufficient nutritional intake for a long time due to feeding that is not in accordance with nutritional needs. Stunting can occur starting when the fetus is still in the womb and only appears when the child is two years old [10]. Stunting that occurs if not balanced with catch-up growth results in decreased growth, the problem of stunting is a public health problem associated with an increased risk of morbidity, mortality, and obstacles to growth both motor and mental. Stunting is formed by inadequate growth faltering and catch-up growth which reflects the inability to achieve optimal growth, it reveals that groups of toddlers born with normal weight can experience stunting if the fulfillment of further needs is not met properly [10, 11] . The role of the family is very important to prevent stunting by paying attention to child nutrition from the womb [12]. Balanced nutritional intake should start from the womb until old age (Soedjatmiko). Nutritional intake of pregnant women supports the health of pregnant women and supports fetal growth and development, namely folic acid, protein, fiber, calcium, fat, milk, and carbohydrates [13]. Families must show their concern for pregnant women, mother-child health, and the problem of stunting [8]. The main focus of handling stunting is for pregnant women not to give birth to stunted children, and the second focus is for all newborns not to be stunted [14]. In Dewa, et al. [1] the causes of stunting consist of many factors that influence each other and the causes are different in each region [15]. Direct causes of stunting include poor nutrition and infectious diseases. Indirectly, stunting can be caused by factors such as food security, family, parenting, health services, and inadequate environmental health, including water and sanitation. Based on data from the Ngada District Health Office (2024), the factors that cause stunting are family smoking (18%), not washing hands with soap (17%), not consuming protein (17%), short pregnancy spacing (9%), infants not consuming exclusive breast milk (9%), children not being cared for by biological parents (5%), and lack of access to clean water (0.7%). Every family should be able to maintain local food security. Local food through feeding patterns is the ability of parents and families to provide time, attention, and support in providing food to their children. A healthy diet for toddlers must pay attention to the readiness of toddler meals, the content of the types of nutrients in the food, menu variations, food texture, and regularity of meal times [16]. Food availability is very important because it is one of the aspects of food security. Food security can be defined as the availability of food and a person's ability to access it [17]. If food security, 1148 Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology ISSN: 2576-8484 Vol. 9, No. 6: 1145-1159, 2025 DOI: 10.55214/25768484.v9i6.8055 © 2025 by the authors; licensee Learning Gate especially family food security, is insufficient, then food intake is low and has an impact on a person's nutritional status [18]. Low food access can lead to health problems. The group most vulnerable to health and nutrition is children under five. This is because children have rapid growth. Toddler stunting is one of the chronic nutritional problems caused by low access and affordability to food. Food security and nutrition are a unity where nutrition is a very important element in improving the quality of life of the population. The prevalence of stunting in Indonesia according to SSGI 2021 data is 24.4%, which is still high than the government's target of 14% [19]. Problems in nutrition can be reflected in not achieving nutritional status. One of the root causes is unmet family food security. If it happens continuously, it can trigger toddlers to experience chronic malnutrition, which results in toddlers experiencing other nutritional problems [19]. Stunting in Bajawa Sub-district, Ngada Regency, for example, is caused by the lack of clean water use, parental care, children's nutritional intake, environmental hygiene, sanitation hygiene, and worms. The community tends to assume that children's height is caused by heredity and lack of awareness about the importance of attending posyandu [1]. Toddlers with very short nutritional status mostly have a household-level food security status in the medium-level food insecurity category. Meanwhile, toddlers with good or normal nutritional status have a food security status of food security. From August 2023 to February 2024, there was a decrease in stunting from 902 children to 874 children, which was caused by 51 children recovering, 54 children graduating (>5 years old), and 10 children moving out of the district [20]. The data on the decline in stunting in Ngada Regency was obtained from the Ngada Regency Government's presentation on June 5, 2024, during the 3rd Rembuk Stunting Conference meeting: Strengthening Multi-Stakeholder Commitment to Accelerate Stunting Reduction Towards a Superior and Independent Generation of Ngada, which can be seen from the percentage of stunting reduction rates in 2021 (11.27%), 2022 (9.3%), 2023 (8.4%), and February 2024 (8.3%). Some locations in Ngada Regency that have stunting cases include Puskesmas Inerie, Puskesmas Surisina, Puskesmas Langa, Puskesmas Ladja, Puskesmas Mangulewa, Puskesmas Lindi, Puskesmas Lengkosambi, Puskesmas Wolowio, Puskesmas Inelika Raya, and Puskesmas Soa. Data on stunted toddlers from e-PPGBM in Ngada Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province for the measurement period of February 2024 can be seen in the following table: 1149 Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology ISSN: 2576-8484 Vol. 9, No. 6: 1145-1159, 2025 DOI: 10.55214/25768484.v9i6.8055 © 2025 by the authors; licensee Learning Gate Table 1. Stunting Status of Children Under Five by Health Center and Village in Ngada District (Measurement Period: February 2024). No Health center Village/Village Advice Total Under- Fives Measured Nutritional Status (TB/U) Total Stunted Children Under Five % Little Stunting Very Short Short Normal High 1 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11=(7+8) 12=(11 /6) 1 1 AIMERE 1 FOA 56 56 2 2 52 0 4 7.1 2 2 AIMERE TIMUR 108 108 1 5 102 0 6 5.6 3 3 AIMERE 59 59 2 4 52 1 6 10.2 4 4 KELIGEJO 25 25 1 2 22 0 3 12.0 5 5 LEKOGOKO 52 52 1 7 44 0 8 15.4 6 6 LEGELAPU 121 121 4 9 108 0 13 10.7 7 7 BINAWALI 52 52 1 2 49 0 3 5.8 8 8 KILA 34 34 0 1 33 0 1 2.9 9 9 WAESAE 74 74 1 8 65 0 9 12.2 10 10 MAWOKISA 99 99 3 7 89 0 10 10.1 Number of health centers 680 680 16 47 616 1 63 9.3 2 11 WATUMAN U 1 DARIWALI 39 39 1 1 37 0 2 5.1 12 2 TIWORIWU 38 38 0 1 37 0 1 2.6 13 3 WATUMANU 45 45 1 0 44 0 1 2.2 14 4 BOWARU 19 19 1 2 16 0 3 15.8 15 5 DARI WALI I 20 20 1 2 17 0 3 15.0 16 6 TWOR IWU I 30 30 4 2 24 0 6 20.0 17 7 TIWORIWU II 31 31 1 3 27 0 4 12.9 18 8 MANUBHARA 44 44 2 4 38 0 6 13.6 Number of health centers 266 266 11 15 240 0 26 9.8 3 19 DONA 1 NARUWOLO 38 38 1 5 32 0 6 15.8 20 2 NENOWEA 22 22 2 4 16 0 6 27.3 21 3 NARUWOLO I 37 37 1 3 33 0 4 10.8 22 4 NARUWOLO II 23 23 1 0 22 0 1 4.3 23 5 NIO LEWA 9 9 0 1 8 0 1 11.1 24 6 BATAJAWA 36 36 1 7 28 0 8 22.2 25 7 LEGERIWU 11 11 1 1 9 0 2 18.2 26 8 WONGAWEA 7 7 0 2 5 0 2 28.6 Number of health centers 183 183 7 23 153 0 30 16.4 1150 Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology ISSN: 2576-8484 Vol. 9, No. 6: 1145-1159, 2025 DOI: 10.55214/25768484.v9i6.8055 © 2025 by the authors; licensee Learning Gate 4 27 INERIE 1 PAUPAGA 57 57 0 1 56 0 1 1.8 28 2 SEBOWULI 40 40 0 1 39 0 1 2.5 29 3 INERIE 48 48 0 4 44 0 4 8.3 30 4 WARUPELE II 33 33 0 0 33 0 0 0.0 31 5 WARUPELE I 53 53 1 1 51 0 2 3.8 32 6 KELITEI 39 39 0 1 37 1 1 2.6 33 7 TIWURANA 25 25 0 2 23 0 2 8.0 34 8 WAEBELA 52 52 2 3 47 0 5 9.6 35 9 RUTO 58 58 0 6 52 0 6 10.3 36 10 NAGE BARU 6 6 0 1 5 0 1 16.7 37 11 ENABHARA 19 19 0 0 19 0 0 0.0 Number of health centers 430 430 3 20 406 1 23 5.3 5 6 38 CITY 1 BAJAWA 154 154 1 4 149 0 5 3.2 39 2 TANALODU 150 150 2 5 143 0 7 4.7 40 3 KISANATA 76 76 0 0 76 0 0 0.0 41 4 JAWAMEZE 71 71 0 5 66 0 5 7.0 42 5 TRIKORA 146 146 1 3 142 0 4 2.7 43 6 NGEDUKELU 182 182 2 4 176 0 6 3.3 44 7 SUSU 122 122 3 9 110 0 12 9.8 45 8 NGORANALE 111 111 2 8 101 0 10 9.0 46 9 BOLONGA 71 71 1 7 63 0 8 11.3 Number of health centers 1083 1083 12 45 1026 0 57 5.3 47 SURISINA 1 FAOBATA 147 147 4 3 140 0 7 4.8 48 2 LEBIJAGA 172 172 1 7 164 0 8 4.7 49 3 NARU 152 152 6 2 144 0 8 5.3 50 4 PAPE 55 55 5 1 49 0 6 10.9 51 5 BOWALI 55 55 1 1 53 0 2 3.6 52 6 UBEDOLUMOLO I 67 67 1 3 63 0 4 6.0 Number of health centers 648 648 18 17 613 0 35 5.4 66 KOELODA 1 SARASEDU 26 26 1 3 22 0 4 15.4 67 2 MALANUZA 124 124 5 6 113 0 11 8.9 68 3 TODABELU 45 45 0 5 40 0 5 11.1 69 4 MATALOKO 55 55 2 1 52 0 3 5.5 70 5 SANGADETO 60 60 2 1 57 0 3 5.0 71 6 SARASEDU I 48 48 2 1 45 0 3 6.3 72 7 MALANUZA I 54 54 1 3 50 0 4 7.4 1151 Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology ISSN: 2576-8484 Vol. 9, No. 6: 1145-1159, 2025 DOI: 10.55214/25768484.v9i6.8055 © 2025 by the authors; licensee Learning Gate 9 10 73 8 ULU BELU 44 44 0 1 43 0 1 2.3 74 9 EKO ROKA 60 60 1 0 59 0 1 1.7 75 10 WAE IA 81 81 0 5 76 0 5 6.2 76 11 BODOSARE 23 23 1 3 19 0 4 17.4 77 12 DOLUPORE 45 45 0 4 41 0 4 8.9 78 13 KELIMOLO 20 20 0 2 18 0 2 10.0 79 14 TIWU TODA 39 39 2 5 32 0 7 17.9 Number of health centers 724 724 17 40 667 0 57 7.9 80 RADABATA 1 RATOGESA 49 49 0 3 46 0 3 6.1 81 2 DADAWEA 39 39 0 3 36 0 3 7.7 82 3 WERE I 100 100 0 3 97 0 3 3.0 83 4 RADABATA 80 80 1 2 77 0 3 3.8 84 5 RADABATA I 23 23 1 0 22 0 1 4.3 85 6 WOGO 64 64 1 10 53 0 11 17.2 86 7 WERE 76 76 1 2 73 0 3 3.9 87 8 WERE IV 44 44 0 3 41 0 3 6.8 Number of health centers 475 475 4 26 445 0 30 6.3 7 8 53 LANGA 1 BEJA 38 38 0 3 35 0 3 7.9 54 2 BOMARI 63 63 0 3 60 0 3 4.8 55 3 UBEDOLUMOLO 58 58 1 8 49 0 9 15.5 56 4 BORANI 80 80 1 5 74 0 6 7.5 57 5 LANGAGEDHA 51 51 0 1 50 0 1 2.0 58 6 BELA 66 66 0 6 60 0 6 9.1 59 7 UBEDOLUMOLO II 69 69 1 3 65 0 4 5.8 60 8 LANGAGEDHA I 28 28 0 1 27 0 1 3.6 61 9 BORADHO 57 57 0 5 52 0 5 8.8 62 10 NGADHAMANA 45 45 2 0 43 0 2 4.4 Number of health centers 555 555 5 35 515 0 40 7.2 63 WOLOWIO 1 BEIWALI 112 112 8 19 85 0 27 24.1 64 2 WAWOWAE 92 92 5 16 71 0 21 22.8 65 3 MUKU FOKA 38 38 2 5 31 0 7 18.4 Number of health centers 242 242 15 40 187 0 55 22.7 88 LADJA 1 WERE II 50 50 0 1 49 0 1 2.0 89 2 WERE III 56 56 2 7 47 0 9 16.1 90 3 KEZEWEA 96 96 1 2 92 1 3 3.1 1152 Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology ISSN: 2576-8484 Vol. 9, No. 6: 1145-1159, 2025 DOI: 10.55214/25768484.v9i6.8055 © 2025 by the authors; licensee Learning Gate 11 12 91 4 NIRMALA 83 83 1 0 82 0 1 1.2 92 5 TAKATUNGA 59 59 2 4 53 0 6 10.2 93 6 SADHA 47 47 3 2 42 0 5 10.6 94 7 RADAMASA 46 46 0 1 45 0 1 2.2 95 8 TAKATUNGA I 17 17 0 0 17 0 0 0.0 96 9 SADHA I 18 18 0 0 18 0 0 0.0 97 10 KEZEWEA I 27 27 0 0 27 0 0 0.0 98 11 WERE V 35 35 1 6 28 0 7 20.0 99 12 WERE VI 39 39 1 4 34 0 5 12.8 Number of health centers 573 573 11 27 534 1 38 6.6 100 BOBA 1 BAWARANI 38 38 0 4 34 0 4 10.5 101 2 WOGOWELA 23 23 0 1 22 0 1 4.3 102 3 WATUSIPI 17 17 1 1 15 0 2 11.8 103 4 BOBA 20 20 1 2 17 0 3 15.0 104 5 BOBA I 38 38 0 5 33 0 5 13.2 105 6 BOBAWA 11 11 0 2 9 0 2 18.2 Number of health centers 147 147 2 15 130 0 17 11.6 13 106 MANGULEWA 1 BEA PAWE 59 59 0 6 53 0 6 10.2 107 2 WATUNAY 46 46 2 4 40 0 6 13.0 108 3 RAKATEDA I 62 62 0 3 59 0 3 4.8 109 4 RAKATEDA II 46 46 3 4 39 0 7 15.2 110 5 DIZI GEDHA 53 53 1 7 45 0 8 15.1 111 6 SOBO 58 58 1 3 54 0 4 6.9 112 7 RAKALABA 47 47 0 2 45 0 2 4.3 113 8 MANGULEWA 47 47 0 3 43 1 3 6.4 114 9 TUREKISA 113 113 2 7 104 0 9 8.0 115 10 RAKALABA 1 35 35 0 1 34 0 1 2.9 116 11 SOBO 2 30 30 2 3 25 0 5 16.7 117 12 BOPOMA 46 46 0 2 43 1 2 4.3 Number of health centers 642 642 11 45 584 2 56 8.7 14 118 WATUKAPU 1 BOWADO 44 44 2 7 35 0 9 20.5 119 2 INEGENA 35 35 1 2 32 0 3 8.6 120 3 WATUKAPU 75 75 0 7 68 0 7 9.3 121 4 GENAMERE 66 66 0 6 60 0 6 9.1 122 5 NGINAMANU 43 43 2 6 35 0 8 18.6 1153 Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology ISSN: 2576-8484 Vol. 9, No. 6: 1145-1159, 2025 DOI: 10.55214/25768484.v9i6.8055 © 2025 by the authors; licensee Learning Gate 15 SELATAN Number of health centers 263 263 5 28 230 0 33 12.5 123 ULUWAE RAYA 1 WAEWEA 32 32 0 1 31 0 1 3.1 124 2 ULUWAE 68 68 0 2 66 0 2 2.9 125 3 ULUWAE I 59 59 0 3 56 0 3 5.1 126 4 ULUWAE II 24 24 0 0 24 0 0 0.0 127 5 HEAWEA 34 34 0 0 34 0 0 0.0 128 6 NGINAMANU BARAT 40 40 0 0 40 0 0 0.0 Number of health centers 257 257 0 6 251 0 6 2.3 16 129 INELIKA RAYA 1 INELIKA 57 57 1 2 54 0 3 5.3 130 2 WOLOLIKA 69 69 2 2 65 0 4 5.8 131 3 NABELENA 107 107 2 5 100 0 7 6.5 132 4 TURA MURI 63 63 2 5 56 0 7 11.1 133 5 MELI WARU 41 41 1 2 38 0 3 7.3 Number of health centers 337 337 8 16 313 0 24 7.1 17 18 134 WAEPANA 1 PIGA 54 54 2 4 48 0 6 11.1 135 2 MASUMELI 53 53 6 7 40 0 13 24.5 136 3 SESO 73 73 3 5 65 0 8 11.0 137 4 WAEPANA 58 58 2 3 53 0 5 8.6 138 5 NGABHEO 42 42 2 4 36 0 6 14.3 139 6 LIBUNIO 49 49 1 6 42 0 7 14.3 140 7 PIGA I 69 69 7 7 55 0 14 20.3 141 8 WAEPANA I 46 46 3 11 32 0 14 30.4 Number of health centers 444 444 26 47 371 0 73 16.4 142 SOA 1 Tarawaja 39 39 0 5 34 0 5 12.8 143 2 Loa 34 34 1 4 29 0 5 14.7 144 3 Mengeruda 61 61 1 4 56 0 5 8.2 145 4 Masu Kedhi 52 52 0 5 47 0 5 9.6 146 5 Sobo I 46 46 2 3 41 0 5 10.9 147 6 Tarawali 60 60 4 9 47 0 13 21.7 148 7 Bogo Boa 59 59 1 8 50 0 9 15.3 149 8 Lokaweka 32 32 1 4 27 0 5 15.6 Number of health centers 383 383 10 42 331 0 52 13.6 150 1 Sambinasi Tengah 10 10 0 0 10 0 0 0.0 1154 Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology ISSN: 2576-8484 Vol. 9, No. 6: 1145-1159, 2025 DOI: 10.55214/25768484.v9i6.8055 © 2025 by the authors; licensee Learning Gate 19 151 RIUNG 2 Latung Barat 19 19 0 1 18 0 1 5.3 152 3 Ite Jaya 44 44 0 1 43 0 1 2.3 153 4 Kota Raja 24 24 0 3 21 0 3 12.5 154 5 Tadho Barat 18 18 0 0 18 0 0 0.0 155 6 Benteng Tengah 80 80 0 4 76 0 4 5.0 156 7 Nangamese 52 52 0 4 48 0 4 7.7 157 8 Latung 19 19 0 0 19 0 0 0.0 158 9 Sambinasi 16 16 0 1 15 0 1 6.3 159 10 Sambiasi Barat 19 19 0 1 18 0 1 5.3 Number of health centers 301 301 0 15 286 0 15 5.0 20 21 160 Rawangkalo 1 Taen Terong 24 24 0 0 24 0 0 0.0 161 2 Rawangkalo 33 33 0 2 31 0 2 6.1 162 3 Wangka 84 84 3 0 81 0 3 3.6 163 4 Rawangkalo I 56 56 2 2 52 0 4 7.1 164 5 Wangka Selatan 85 85 0 1 84 0 1 1.2 165 6 Taen Terong I 23 23 0 0 23 0 0 0.0 166 7 Taen Terong Ii 31 31 1 1 29 0 2 6.5 167 8 Rawangkalo Ii 35 35 1 4 30 0 5 14.3 168 9 Wangka Barat 30 30 0 1 29 0 1 3.3 169 10 Wakamanga 57 57 1 1 55 0 2 3.5 Number of health centers 458 458 8 12 438 0 20 4.4 170 LENGKOSAM BI 1 Lengkosambi 18 18 0 1 17 0 1 5.6 171 2 Tadho 26 26 1 1 24 0 2 7.7 172 3 Lengkosambi Timur 42 42 1 2 39 0 3 7.1 173 4 Lengkosambi Barat 61 61 1 3 57 0 4 6.6 174 5 Lekosambi Utara 33 33 1 0 32 0 1 3.0 175 6 Lengkosambi Tengah 26 26 0 1 25 0 1 3.8 176 7 Daya 30 30 1 1 28 0 2 6.7 177 8 Tadho Timur 36 36 1 1 34 0 2 5.6 178 9 Tadho Tengah 46 46 0 1 45 0 1 2.2 Number of health centers 318 318 6 11 301 0 17 5.3 179 Maronggela 1 Wolomeze 75 75 0 3 72 0 3 4.0 180 2 Ria 59 59 2 0 57 0 2 3.4 181 3 Lanamai 36 36 1 1 34 0 2 5.6 182 4 Ngara 40 40 0 0 40 0 0 0.0 1155 Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology ISSN: 2576-8484 Vol. 9, No. 6: 1145-1159, 2025 DOI: 10.55214/25768484.v9i6.8055 © 2025 by the authors; licensee Learning Gate 22 23 183 5 Ria I 41 41 0 2 39 0 2 4.9 184 6 Wolomeze I 51 51 1 1 49 0 2 3.9 185 7 Lanamai I 54 54 0 1 53 0 1 1.9 186 8 Wolomeze Ii 48 48 0 0 48 0 0 0.0 187 9 Ngara I 32 32 0 0 32 0 0 0.0 188 10 Wate 32 32 0 1 31 0 1 3.1 189 11 Kembang 13 13 0 1 12 0 1 7.7 190 12 Lanamai Ii 14 14 0 1 13 0 1 7.1 191 13 Niliwarusae 7 7 0 0 7 0 0 0.0 Number of health centers 502 502 4 11 487 0 15 3.0 192 Lindi 1 Benteng Tawa 48 48 4 5 39 0 9 18.8 193 2 Benteng Tawa I 22 22 1 4 17 0 5 22.7 194 3 Benteng Tawa II 39 39 2 4 33 0 6 15.4 195 4 Benteng Tawa III 22 22 0 0 22 0 0 0.0 196 5 Benteng Tawa IV 28 28 2 2 24 0 4 14.3 197 6 Benteng Tawa V 30 30 3 4 23 0 7 23.3 Number of health centers 189 189 12 19 158 0 31 16.4 24 198 Natarandang 1 Turaloa 49 49 3 2 44 0 5 10.2 199 2 Mainai 15 15 0 1 14 0 1 6.7 200 3 Denatana 32 32 0 4 28 0 4 12.5 201 4 Nginamanu 114 114 6 16 92 0 22 19.3 202 5 Mulu mese 12 12 0 1 11 0 1 8.3 203 6 Lari laki 50 50 3 11 36 0 14 28.0 204 7 Wue 56 56 2 3 51 0 5 8.9 205 8 Denatana timur 36 36 1 5 30 0 6 16.7 206 9 Turaloa timur 21 21 1 2 18 0 3 14.3 Number of health centers 385 385 16 45 324 0 61 15.8 Total Ngada district 10485 10485 227 647 9606 5 874 8.3 Source: Ngada District Health Office (Measurement Data February 2024) 1156 Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology ISSN: 2576-8484 Vol. 9, No. 6: 1145-1159, 2025 DOI: 10.55214/25768484.v9i6.8055 © 2025 by the authors; licensee Learning Gate The decline in the stunting rate in Ngada Regency is inseparable from the government's attention to improving the welfare of the community by adhering to the principles: toddlers under the age of 2 can be cured, prevention is better than recovery, and all newborns should not fall into stunting. The National Strategy for Accelerating Stunting Reduction Based on Presidential Regulation No.72 of 2021, among others: reducing the prevalence of stunting, improving the quality of family life preparation, ensuring the fulfillment of nutritional intake, improving parenting, increasing access and quality of health services, and increasing access to drinking water and sanitation. The target groups of this stunting reduction strategy, namely: teenagers, brides-to-be, pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers, and children aged 0-59 months. However, some of the problems that are still faced to date, resulting in the persistence of stunting in Ngada Regency are: the provision of anti-stunting nutrition is only given to stunted infants, making it more likely that normal infants will experience stunting and focusing more on supplementary feeding. The welfare of farmers in Ngada Regency is still relatively low, as the composition of Ngada's economy is still dominated by the agricultural sector at 35.02%. Even so, the figures published by BPS NTT in 2023 placed Ngada in third place in terms of the smallest percentage of poor people in NTT Province, behind Kupang City and East Flores (Introductory Speech to the Ngada Regency Central Statistics Agency [21]). One of the factors that can be identified as the cause of farmers' low welfare is the lack of quality of farmers' human resources [22]. Therefore, human resource management efforts are needed to overcome this problem [23]. Research Wuli [7] shows that one of the obstacles facing the agricultural sector in Indonesia is still the limited quality of human resources (HR) in agriculture. The low level of welfare of farmers in Indonesia is caused by their inadequate abilities, such as managerial skills, weak bargaining power, limited access to capital and information, and low levels of education. One of the reasons for the low interest of the labor force to work in the agricultural sector is the lack of income earned. Agricultural graduates prefer to work in other sectors that are promising in terms of income and welfare. Many of them have side businesses outside the non-agricultural sector [7]. The younger generation's interest in agriculture is declining because they think that being a farmer is not only less economically promising but also considered a less prestigious job, so it is a big task for the role of human resources management to improve the welfare of farmers, especially in Ngada Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province, which has potential in agriculture [23]. According to Wuli [7] the Rome Declaration on World Food Security and the 1996 World Food Summit confirmed that food security is realized when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient safe and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life. The sector that is most relied upon and has a strategic role in food provision is the agricultural sector. Food availability is not only limited to its quantity and distribution but also guarantees the livability of the population. Therefore, the issues of self-reliance, food availability, and food affordability are closely related to the capacity of farmers to run their businesses. One of the obstacles faced by the agricultural sector is the limited quality of human resources in agriculture. Realizing the importance of superior agricultural human resources [24] the Indonesian Ministry of Agriculture through the Ministry of Agriculture Strategic Plan 2020-2024 elaborates on national development in the 2005-2025 RPJPN in the vision and mission of President Jokowi which is simplified into five directions to be achieved within five years (2020-2024). The first point of the five presidential directives is human resource development to create hardworking human resources (workers) who are dynamic, productive, skilled, and mastering science and technology supported by industrial cooperation and global talents. The other four directives are infrastructure development, simplification of regulations, simplification of bureaucracy, and economic transformation. In Wuli [25] there is a vision. One of the mission points of Ngada Regency for 2021-2024 is the realization of a superior, independent, and cultured Ngada community focused on environmentally 1157 Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology ISSN: 2576-8484 Vol. 9, No. 6: 1145-1159, 2025 DOI: 10.55214/25768484.v9i6.8055 © 2025 by the authors; licensee Learning Gate friendly agriculture and tourism. Meanwhile, one of the missions mentions regional economic development through key sectors, including agriculture, livestock, fisheries, and tourism, with attention to the environment. As the vision and mission emphasize that the agricultural sector is one of the strategic roles in the development of Ngada Regency's economic development agenda, the selection of the sector as one of the key sectors in economic development reflects the important role that agriculture plays in contributing to local economic growth. Ngada Regency has a large area of agricultural land, abundant natural resources, and climate- supportive agriculture. Increasing the potential for community welfare through the agricultural sector such as South Golewa District is one of the sub-districts in Ngada Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province which has a tropical climate and is located at an altitude of 0-750 meters above sea level. South Golewa District has agricultural potential in food commodities, horticulture, and plantations. The agricultural potential of South Golewa Ngada Regency is the largest contributor to agriculture. Leading commodities spread across villages in the South Golewa sub-district include rice, corn, bananas, cocoa, and candlenuts [26]. While Wolomeze Sub-district is part of the Ngada Regency Region, Wolomeze Sub-district has strategic potential in the agricultural sector, especially rice, corn, and horticultural crops [27]. Food, especially staple foods, plays a very important role in Indonesia. Most staple foods in Indonesia such as cereals, which include rice, corn, and wheat flour, have a major impact on people's daily lives. Of the three, rice is the most dominant food choice for the population. Rice is one of Indonesia's important and widely cultivated food crop commodities because it is the staple food of most Indonesians. For Indonesians, rice is one of the primary needs because it is a source of energy and carbohydrates [28]. With this opportunity, it should be able to contribute to the welfare of farmers. As an implementation of President Jokowi's vision: “The realization of an advanced Indonesia that is sovereign, independent and has a personality based on Gotong Royong”, agricultural and food development is directed at realizing advanced, independent, and modern agriculture to increase economic growth and lead to an increase in the welfare of farmers which leads to strengthening food sovereignty and security [7]. Advanced agriculture can be defined as improving the quality of agricultural human resources with managerial skills through the application of human resource management (HRM) that can increase work productivity and welfare. Advanced agriculture is also characterized by real and effective community participation in agricultural development. In today's digital era, there are wide opportunities for millennials to take over the agricultural sector, starting from utilizing technology and information in various agricultural activities such as planting, and seed selection, to sales. Supported by new innovations to tractor machines that can facilitate rice planting. Millennial farmers also do not need to be afraid of crop failure, because now there are start-up applications in monitoring pests and climate weather so that losses will decrease. But on the other hand, there needs to be assistance from the government, of course, from the discussion above there is something that facilitates the needs of farmers. Such as access to capital which is a confusion for novice farmers. One of the activities of millennial farmers is training on information systems and online- based marketing, which is also one part of the program to improve the human resources of farmers, especially millennial farmers [7]. The younger generation is key, and modern agriculture is the solution to attracting the younger generation to get involved in the agricultural business. Make a movement of change from millennial farmers themselves, change the view of the farming profession. The utilization of digitalis will certainly be very helpful in working. The e-PPGBM Name by Address data shows the nutritional status and growth status of toddler 'T'. 'T' toddlers are defined as toddlers with age growth but not weight gain. Several strategies can be adopted to improve human resource management to create superior agriculture for food security. First, emphasis needs to be placed on improving the quality of education and training in agriculture. In addition, an important focus is placed on improving the motivation and welfare of farmers. Another strategic step is to empower farmer organizations through education and 1158 Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology ISSN: 2576-8484 Vol. 9, No. 6: 1145-1159, 2025 DOI: 10.55214/25768484.v9i6.8055 © 2025 by the authors; licensee Learning Gate extension. Finally, optimizing the cooperation of various parties, including the government, the private sector, and the community, is also important in improving the management of agricultural human resources [23]. With efforts to improve human resource management to create superior agriculture in improving food security and nutrition, the stunting rate in Ngada Regency has decreased. The implementation of an integrated strategy is expected to achieve optimal food security agriculture as an economic driver and improve the welfare of farmers. Enhanced cooperation between parties will ensure efficient utilization of resources, creating a competitive, independent, and modern agriculture. Thus, sustainable food security development can be realized in Ngada Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province. 4. Conclusions Human resources in the agricultural sector play an important role in creating a superior agricultural sector to improve food security and nutrition, ultimately contributing to the reduction of stunting in Ngada Regency. In Bajawa Subdistrict, Ngada Regency, stunting occurs due to several factors such as lack of access to clean water, suboptimal parenting, inadequate nutritional intake of children, low environmental hygiene, poor sanitation, and worm infections. So, overcoming the causal factors related to food insecurity and inadequate nutritional intake requires improving the quality of human resources in related sectors. However, the agricultural sector in Indonesia still faces challenges in terms of the quality of human resources. The low welfare of farmers is often caused by inadequate capabilities, including managerial skills, weak bargaining power, limited access to capital and information, and low levels of education. To achieve optimal food security and make agriculture the driving force of the economy, the implementation of integrated strategies is needed such as improving the quality of education and training in agriculture, increasing the motivation and welfare of farmers, empowering farmer organizations through education and extension, and optimizing cooperation with various parties. Thus, sustainable food security can be realized in Ngada Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province. Transparency: The authors confirm that the manuscript is an honest, accurate, and transparent account of the study; that no vital features of the study have been omitted; and that any discrepancies from the study as planned have been explained. This study followed all ethical practices during writing. Copyright: © 2025 by the authors. This open-access article is distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). References [1] Y. A. Dewa, D. D. Konstantinus, and M. F. Yasinta, "Profile of stunting in early childhood," Journal of Children's Education Image, vol. 2, no. 2, pp. 426–434, 2023. [2] T. S. Pambudi and K. M. Djawahir, Social enterprise & food security, dissecting the role of social enterprise in building food security. Jakarta: PT. Swasembada Media Bisnis, 2023. [3] R. N. 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