The establishment of the new province clearly shows the attention of the government and DPR (House of Representatives) to the aspirations of various parties, especially native Papuans, who aspire for welfare improvement to be expedited in the region
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The inauguration of Southwest Papua, as a new province, was an initial step to improve public services and welfare in Papua, Deputy V of the Head of the Presidential Staff Office (KSP) Jaleswari Pramodhawardani stated.

"The establishment of the new province clearly shows the attention of the government and DPR (House of Representatives) to the aspirations of various parties, especially native Papuans, who aspire for welfare improvement to be expedited in the region," she noted in a statement on Monday.

Pramodhawardani remarked that the new province, which was established through Law Number 29 of 2022 concerning Southwest Papua, has various natural potentials, one of which is the Raja Ampat tourism destination.

In addition to the tourism attraction, the province has abundant mining potential, she pointed out.

Hence, intensive collaboration among the government, religious leaders, indigenous people, business actors, academics, media, and social organizations is deemed necessary to seek equitable distribution of welfare in Indonesia's youngest province, the deputy remarked.

"The acting governor (Muhammad Musa'ad) must be able to build collaboration among all parties to ensure that a more inclusive and anthropological-based development paradigm, which prioritizes the involvement of indigenous Papuans, can be applied in Southwest Papua," she remarked.

Furthermore, she emphasized the importance of cooperation between the central and regional governments, since there is an increase in the allocation of the Special Autonomy (Otsus) Fund as well as a change in the transfer mechanism of the fund to districts and cities.

The Otsus Fund has been increased to become 2.25 percent of the National General Allocation Fund.

"In addition, there is a gap in the quality of public services, especially in the Maybrat, Raja Ampat, and Tambrauw areas, so technical competence and assistance programs in planning; budgeting; as well as good and service procurement must be optimally strengthened,” Pramodhawardani noted.

She remarked that the monitoring and controlling mechanisms on various priority programs should also be bolstered to prevent corruption in the Southwest Papua Provincial Government’s bureaucracy.

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Translator: Indra Pribadi, Uyu Liman
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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