Vice President Gibran Rakabuming carefully planted a casuarina tree\ninto the ground at the Holy Cross Cathedral in Agats, Asmat Regency,\nSouth Papua, on Sunday (21\/6\/2026). For the Asmat community, the tree is\nnot merely ornamental but carries deep meaning: a symbol of growing\nlife, enduring hope, and a commitment to completing a cathedral built\nthrough mutual cooperation and local natural wealth.<\/p>\n
The tree planting was part of the Vice President\u2019s working agenda in\nthe South Papua region. According to the Vice Presidential Secretariat,\nthe visit aimed to ensure that basic infrastructure development,\nincluding religious service facilities, is progressing optimally in the\narea.<\/p>\n
This review of the church construction aligns with President Prabowo\nSubianto\u2019s directive to strengthen inclusive and equitable development.\nThe government\u2019s focus is on reaching frontier, outermost, and\ndisadvantaged regions so that no area feels left behind in the national\nmodernisation process.<\/p>\n
Upon arrival, Vice President Gibran received an in-depth briefing on\nthe building\u2019s physical progress from Vallens Aji Sayekti, Head of\nSocio-Economic Development for the Agats Diocese. Aji explained that the\nmain structure of the church is fully complete. The project is now\nentering a crucial phase, namely the completion of the roof and interior\nwork.<\/p>\n
One of the unique aspects of the new Holy Cross Cathedral is the use\nof abundant local materials from the Asmat region. \u2018All the wood is from\nhere, Sir. This is local wood, Sir. This is all done manually, Sir,\u2019 Aji\nexplained to the Vice President.<\/p>\n
The construction stands as tangible proof of the strength of mutual\ncooperation. Funding and labour have come from various sources,\nincluding donors, the local government, voluntary contributions from\nCatholic civil servants, and the active participation of the local\ncongregation. However, the diocese acknowledged that there is still a\nbudget shortfall to complete all the finishing details.<\/p>\n
The planting of the casuarina tree by Vice President Gibran at the\nend of the review is hoped to ignite a spirit of togetherness. The tree\nrepresents environmental stewardship as well as the central government\u2019s\ncommitment to continue safeguarding a better future for Asmat through\nthe provision of proper public and religious facilities.<\/p>\n
This visit underscored that development in South Papua is not solely\nabout physical structures, but also about nurturing the soul and\nspirituality of the community through representative facilities that\nhonour local wisdom.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/planting-hope-in-asmat-land-through-a-casuarina-tree-1782060620", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }