Press Statement of President of the Republic of Indonesia after the Inauguration of Papua Youth Creative Hub (PYCH) in Jayapura City, Papua Province, March 21, 2023

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Frankly speaking, what we see here is truly excellent. It has everything starting from those related to livestock, fisheries, and the creative industries. Then, there are those who build platform applications. There is fashion. There is music. There is photography. There is everything. This will provide opportunities, provide chances for young Papuans to be able to improve and develop the quality of their human resources.

Therefore, earlier I ordered that this should not only be conducted in Papua but also in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), Maluku, and Aceh provinces. Maybe, do it with a little modification, customized to the wishes of the young people in those provinces.

Journalists
Doesn’t it require a huge budget?

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Pardon?

Journalists
This is going to cost a lot, Sir. Those in other provinces…

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

No problem. The budget will be beneficial if the existing assets are well utilized. There is no problem. This is not a budget issue. This is considering that we are seeing a great opportunity which young people are responding very quickly and very well. Why do not we replicate it in other provinces?

Journalists
Mr. President, there are thousands of products exhibited here. Can they be networked for the purposes of marketing? as it is the main problem?

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Earlier, they learned how to package, brand, and differentiate products. It has been a week or two since the products entered the national platforms, such as Bangga Buatan Indonesia (Proudly Made in Indonesia), Shopee, and Tokopedia. It means that later they will be cross-province products. These local products, as long as they have good packaging, quality, and branding, will be in high demand not only by people in Papua but also outside Papua . It is now very easy that way and there is no shipping cost, no shipping cost. That is it.

Journalists
Sir, related to this one, on the current condition of the New Zealand pilots, the pilots who are being held hostage, what are the concerns of the Government itself, Sir?

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

Last night we had an internal meeting and one of the issues we discussed was on this. The very first thing is to be very careful, so safety comes first.

Journalists
Sir, the requests from pilots for air safety, as most of those who fly this mountain route are captured…

President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)

We already discussed that last night. You can ask the National Police Chief or the Military Commander-in-Chief.

Journalists
Thank you, Sir.

(FI/HD)