Tracing Back the Transformation History of B2P2TOOT
"Seeing the vast expanse of medicinal and herbal plantation complete with its health facilities that support its upstream to downstream processes, a question may arise, what was the early history of B2P2TOOT like? What processes that lead this institution becoming the spearhead of the Ministry of Health in the field of medicinal plants and jamu? Let's trace back the history of B2P2TOOT! "Published by : Kurnia HD - 20/05/2020 21:48 WIB
3 Minutes read.
Long before its transformation into B2P2TOOT, it was a garden of medicinal plants in the collection of a Dutch botanist. A man who greatly contributed in managing the garden is R.M Santoso Suryokusumo. With all his enthusiasm, love, and knowledge, and care he tended all medicinal plants in the land which is located at an altitude of 1,150 meters above sea level at the foot of Mount Lawu.
In order to safeguard this very valuable asset, R.M. Santoso decided to give it to the state. This garden was then officially managed by the Indonesian government. Since 1948, government medicinal plant gardens have been managed through the Eijkman institution and have been named the Hortus Medicus Tawangmangu. The Eijkman Institute itself is a molecular biology research institute with the status of a work unit under the auspices of the Ministry of Research, Technology and Higher Education of the Republic of Indonesia (Kemenristekdikti RI).
Image source: http://www.b2p2toot.litbang.kemkes.go.id/
“Before transforming into B2P2TOOT, there is a long history, starting from a medicinal plant garden. There was a botanist from the Netherlands who made a garden of medicinal plants and made a collection of them. Starting from the colonial era the garden then taken over by Indonesian researcher. Then there was a person named R.M Santoso Suryokusumo who managed the garden. Finally, the garden was officially passed to the government, which was first managed by the Eijkman Institute and then submitted to a health institution,”explained Akhmad Saikhu.
Image source: http://www.b2p2toot.litbang.kemkes.go.id/
R.M Santoso Suryokusumo is considered the founder because he started the garden. He was then assisted by Prof. Dr. Sutarman, the founder and leader of the Klaten emergency laboratory. R.M. Santoso himself is a son of the Regent of Kebumen who studied Pharmacy in the Netherlands by taking expertise in medicinal plants. He is a figure who really cares about medicinal plants which are the wealth of the Indonesian people. He was also a guerrilla soldier from one place to another and happened to stop in Tawangmangu and found this Dutch heritage garden.
The changing of the Hortus Medicus management agency occurred several times. In April 1978, the Minister of Health Decree No. 149 of 1978 was issued which transformed the medicinal plant collection garden into a research institution called the Balai Penelitian Tanaman Obat/BPTO (Medicinal Plant Research Institute) as an UPT under the auspices of the Health Research and Development Agency, the Indonesian Ministry of Health. The main task of BPTO is to carry out research on medicinal plants including exploration, adaptation and cultivation of medicinal plants, as well as phytochemical tests of medicinal plants.
In July 2006 the Minister of Health issued Permenkes Number 491 of 2006 which increased the institutional status of the BPTO to become the Center for Research on Medicinal Plants and Traditional Medicines. Along with this change in status, the scope of its main duties has also increased as a research institute and development of medicinal plants and traditional medicines to support the improvement of public health status.
“Milestone B2P2TOOT is the Balai Penelitian Tanaman Obat or commonly abbreviated as BPTO (since 1978). Then because of its growing function, B2P2TOOT from being originally a medicinal plant to become a traditional medicine, the research area has also increased, the BPTO has turned into a balai besar (research center) until now, “said Akhmad Saikhu.