The Republican government continues to intensify development efforts in the Land of Papua in order to improve the welfare of the local people. This effort was carried out by the government using a cultural approach as an optimal strategic step.
The prosperity of the Land of Papua is in sight, in a little while the Eastern Region can catch up like other regions of Indonesia. The government has committed to advancing Papua and improving the prosperity of its people. Of course, there are various efforts that need to be made in developments in the Land of Papua.
Vice President (Wapres) KH Ma’ruf Amin carries out his duties to advance together with important Papuan religious figures. The reason is that the role of religious figures is the key to success in creating the Earth of Cendrawasih to be more advanced and prosperous.
By approaching religious leaders, church leaders, pastors and other important traditional figures, this is one way of communication that connects the government and local communities. Religious leaders are considered to be very close to the community, therefore their presence plays an important role in Papua’s development. They can convey an understanding to the community that this development is intended for the Papuan people.
Religious leaders in the Land of Papua who become community leaders indeed have a huge influence. They can guide the community regarding the goals and functions of development on their land. Indeed, this development requires good cooperation between the Government as the developer and the Papuan people as land owners. If the two of them work together well and fight together, then the results that will be obtained will also be felt together, especially for the prosperity of Papua.
Nevertheless, the mission to accelerate development for the welfare of the Land of Papua will also be successful and achieved. On the same occasion, several religious figures from Bumi Cenderawasih expressed their joy at the seriousness of the Indonesian Government in making the land of Papua prosperous.
One of them, the Bishop of Jayapura, Yanuaris You, admitted that he was very grateful because the presence of the Vice President directly there meant that the government was indeed very willing to listen to all the complaints and aspirations expressed by the grassroots community.
Likewise, the General Chairperson of the Papuan Church Fellowship (PGGP), Rev. Hiskia Rollo added that so far, only in the era of President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) have there been high-ranking state officials who were even willing to spend quite a long time just to be able to listen and be able to interact directly with the people in Papua.
Meanwhile, the Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture (Menko PMK), Muhadjir Effendi, said that the government’s efforts to continue to build progress on Earth of Cenderawasih must start with steps to develop the youth there first. This is because young people are the driving force and also a very strategic asset for carrying out development in the region for a sustainable future.
To further optimize this, the central government has also established coordination and integration with the local regional government (Pemda), where they are also continuously encouraged to be able to empower the young generation in Papua. Bearing in mind, there are actually a lot of Papuan graduate students who are able to compete with students from other regions, even at well-known campuses in the country. For this reason, they really need encouragement and assistance so that they can be more optimal.
By making good use of all young human resources, they will also be able to become part of development in Papua. The reason is, in the future, the easternmost province in Indonesia will be able to be developed well, if there is also a direct contribution and active role from its own young generation.
It is impossible for welfare development in Papua to run well and according to targets if it is not balanced by the active role of the local young generation. The central government has also provided many facilities that can be used as well as possible by young people as an effort to develop their creativity and also an effort to collaborate among young people in Papua.
Therefore, having a cultural approach is a key to the success of accelerating welfare development for the Papuan people, which the government itself continues to intensify as a strategic and optimal step, namely by involving community leaders, traditional leaders, religious leaders and the young generation of indigenous Papuans (OAP) themselves.
