Roikhanatun Nafi’ah, an alumnus of the Department of Systems and Industrial Engineering at the Sepuluh Nopember Institute of Technology (ITS), has successfully made Indonesia proud on the international stage. Through the startup Crustea Indonesia, which she founded, Nafi' won 1st Place at the 13th World Bank Group Youth Summit held in Washington DC, United States.
The innovation brought by Crustea focuses on the digitalization and modernization of aquaculture for small-scale farmers. Together with her colleague, Prisma Riashuda Prakosa, an alumnus of Electrical Engineering at ITS, Nafi' designed a solution to overcome classic problems often faced by local farmers, such as high operational costs, electricity limitations, and the risk of harvest failure due to fluctuations in water oxygen levels.
To overcome these obstacles, Crustea developed a smart pond ecosystem that integrates the Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT) with renewable energy. One of its flagship products is the solar-powered Eco-Aerator, which can supply oxygen stably without relying on the state electricity grid (PLN) or fossil fuels. Additionally, AIoT sensors installed in the ponds can monitor water quality parameters such as pH, temperature, and salinity in real-time, automatically activating the aerator when oxygen levels drop.
Since being commercialized in September 2022, the impact of this technology has been very significant for farmers. Crustea recorded that the mortality rate of shrimp and fish commodities was successfully suppressed by up to 50 percent, while energy costs were reduced by up to 80 percent for farmers who previously used diesel engines. Not only that, the adoption of this eco-friendly technology is claimed to be able to prevent carbon emissions by more than 23,000 tons of CO2 equivalent.
Currently, Crustea's mentoring network has reached more than a thousand fish farmers in various regions of Indonesia, with a target of adding 2,000 new partners this year. In addition to marketing technological devices, Crustea also provides continuous education through climate-resilient field schools and women's empowerment. Expansion steps have also begun to be pioneered in several developing countries such as India, the Philippines, and regions in the African continent to support sustainable global food security.
