Sky Toll in Papua, West Papua Will Boost Equitable National Development, VP Says
Vice President Ma’ruf Amin inaugurates Raja Ampat e-Festival online, Monday (28/06/2021) (Photo by: Vice President’s Secretariat)
Vice President Ma’ruf Amin Monday (28/06/2021) said that sky toll infrastructure would speed up equitable national development all over Indonesia, including in the eastern Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua.
For the record, Sky Toll Program is a concept expected to boost equitable national development, provide information and communication infrastructure, and connect all regions all over the archipelago.
To that end, Ma’ruf said he had ordered Minister of Communication and Informatics to ensure that Papua and West Papua can also be served with this program as it will boost innovation, expand digital economic acceleration and financial integration in the two provinces into the national digital ecosystem.
Based on Presidential Instruction Number 9 of 2020 on Acceleration of Welfare Development in Papua Province and West Papua Province, the Vice President added that the Government is committed to continue efforts to improve developments in Papua and West Papua, one of which by promoting Papua’s tourism and local products through “Proud of Made in Indonesian Product” and “Proud of Travelling in Indonesia” national campaigns in order to create jobs and boost economic growth.
The campaign, he added, is also related to digital transformation acceleration program and national creative industry that encourages players of micro, small, and medium scale enterprises (MSMEs) into digital ecosystem, adding that as technology advances, it is also important to pay attention to the change of people’s spending habits.
“I order central bank Bank Indonesia (BI), the Central Government and regional governments, as well as private sector to collaborate so that the digitalization program can run well through the improvement of digital literacy for people who involve in tourism, MSMEs, and community. I also order Ministry of Communication and Informatics to optimize Digital Leadership Academy, Digital Talent Scholarship, and “Digital Literacy Cybercreation” National Movement for people in Papua and West Papua,” the Vice President said.
The Vice President expressed his appreciation to BI for innovating a digital payment platform through Quick Response Code Indonesian Standard (QRIS) program, adding that he also expressed hope that the innovation can be optimally used for tourism and MSMEs sectors, especially in Papua and West Papua.
Related to “Proud of Travelling in Indonesia” National Movement, the Vice President added, it is expected that Raja Ampat can support the target of Indonesia’s tourism recovery by providing tourism facilities and observing strict health protocols.
“This event was carried out under collaboration between ministries and Regional Government in order to appreciate Regional Governments that has formed a team for Regional Digital Acceleration and Expansion, a business matching event between businesses, local governments, MSMEs, and banks as well as an educational platform for businesses on digitalization of the digital economy and finance,” he remarked.
In response to that, Minister of Information Johnny G. Plate said that his Ministry is strongly committed to accelerating digital transformation to make Indonesia a digital nation with a faster internet.
Echoing a similar sentiment, Governor of BI Perry Wariyo said that the digital economy and finance will continue to grow and amid COVID-19 pandemic and it has been proven that these sectors become one of solutions to boost national and regional economy
Meanwhile, Vice Governor of West Papua province Mohamad Lokatani expressed his appreciation to all stakeholders for realizing Raja Ampat E-Festival as an effort to boost economic growth and promote digital finance in the province. (Vice President’s Secretariat/UN) (AP/EP)
