Toke: Rural Economic Institution in Indonesia

This study discussed toke as an economic institution in the village. Sociologically, toke is always studied through a patron-client approach that causes peasant households to always be in poverty. While the author's experience received social and economic support from toke. This is an ethnographic study, the researcher stayed with toke for more than a year. Researchers conducted engaged participation in all toke activities, observation of the entire area of Parit Baru village and in-depth interviews with selected informants. The study found that toke is a village economic institution that plays a role not only economically but also socially by ensuring the continuity of household consumption through debt. Toke requires 4 rounds of capital to stay on as a toke and always add clients through debt. If toke tidan is able to meet the demand for a loan of money from its client, then automatically the existing debt is considered to be paid off. This research contributes to rural socioeconomic studies, particularly to client patron theory. That the toke is not only a sucker for farmers but also as a guarantor of the slimness of household consumption.