26 regencies slated for greater autonomy

26 regencies slated for greater autonomy

JAKARTA (JP): The government will begin handing over greater autonomy to 26 regency administrations across the country in April as pilot projects for the granting of greater say and responsibility to even more regions, a senior official of the Ministry of Home Affairs said yesterday.

Director General of Regional Autonomy Sumitro Maskun told reporters that President Soeharto will launch the trial-run for the government's decentralization program in April.

Sumitro said the 26 provinces concerned have been selected as models.

Each of the 26 regencies will receive Rp 60 million ($28,000) to implement the program. The central administration will also dispatch officials to help.

"If the models run smoothly, we will expand the program to other regencies nationwide," he said.

He added that the program would be adjusted and modified to suit the particular, local conditions in each regency.

He did not name the regencies that have been selected for the pilot project.

Officials said the policy of giving greater regional autonomy requires the presence of strong legislative councils in the regencies because it is the council members who make the policies that the administrations have to implement.

Sumitro said the decentralization program has a number of basic objectives. They include:

* Strengthening the local economy because local administrators and politicians have a better knowledge of the economic potentialities of their region than does the central government.

* Improving public services.

* Meeting the needs of each region appropriately and quickly.

* Strengthening the democratic process in the regions.

Sumitro said personnel, organization and management are the problems most often cited by regencies in discussions about greater regional autonomy. (29)