Siboru, Douw Aturure Airports Expected to Facilitate Accessibility in the Land of Papua

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo inaugurated the operation of two airports in Papua, namely Siboru Airport in Fakfak regency, West Papua province and Douw Aturure Airport in Nabire regency, Central Papua province, Thursday (11/23). In his statement, the presence of these two airports aims to facilitate accessibility to areas of Papua that are still difficult to reach.

“We know that access in Papua is not easy. There are still many areas there that are difficult to reach, the access is difficult, and it can take hours or even days to get to an area,” said President Jokowi in his remarks at the inauguration which was centered at Siboru Airport, Fakfak.

The President emphasized that better transportation facilities and infrastructure are urgently needed in line with the growing and increasing development and economy in the land of Papua.

“Siboru Airport and Douw Aturure Airport that we inaugurated today will increase connectivity in Papua, increase the mobility of people and goods, and open up many opportunities to trigger the growth of new economies and new businesses,” he said.

Siboru Airport, said the President, will become an air bridge in the West Papua region, connecting Fakfak with other areas such as Sorong, Timika, Kaimana, Amahai, Babo, Dobo and Bintuni. Meanwhile, Douw Aturure Airport will connect Nabire with several cities in Papua, such as Timika, Manokwari and Jayapura.

President Jokowi also asked the regional government as well as the local community to maximize the existence of the airports to introduce the potential of the Papua region. For example, the airports can be involved in promoting tourist destinations in Papua so that more and more tourists will flock to Papua.

“I ask the regional government and the community to make the best use of these airports, take advantage of increasingly open access to introduce the potential that exists in our region, introduce existing tourist destinations, and increase tourist visits to the land of Papua,” he said.

Previously, Minister of Transportation Budi Karya Sumadi said that Siboru Airport and Douw Aturure Airport came as the result of collaboration between the Central and regional governments to complement each other.

“The regional government had provided its land to the Central Government. Then, the Central Government carried out the construction of terminals, runways and other facilities,” said the Minister of Transportation, Wednesday (11/22) in Papua.

Siboru Airport was built since 2020 until 2023, while Douw Aturure Airport since 2020 until 2022. (DND/UN) (TM/MMB)