DPD: Archipelagic Regions Bill Can Maximise Potential of Island Provinces

Indonesia is the world’s largest archipelagic nation. Yet millions of people living on small, outermost islands and in archipelagic regions continue to face development disparities. Limited access to education, healthcare, connectivity, regional fiscal capacity, and the suboptimal utilisation of marine potential remain issues that hinder public welfare. Stemming from these conditions, the DPD RI is championing the Archipelagic Regions Bill as a new foundation for national development that is fairer and aligned with Indonesia’s geographical character. This effort has now entered a crucial phase. After being officially discussed with the DPR RI, the DPD RI Archipelagic Regions Bill Working Team participated in a series of Public Hearing Meetings held by the DPR RI Special Committee for the Archipelagic Regions Bill with the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The cross-ministerial discussions aim to strengthen the substance of the bill so it can comprehensively address the development issues of archipelagic regions, from governance and fiscal justice to the management of marine potential and the strengthening of national defence and sovereignty. Head of the DPD RI Archipelagic Regions Bill Working Team, Andi Sofyan Hasdam, stressed that the bill is an effort to correct the national development paradigm, which has so far been more oriented towards land territories. He noted that Indonesia has long been recognised globally as an archipelagic state, and development policies should therefore accommodate the characteristics of archipelagic regions more fairly. ‘We have acknowledged since the Djuanda Declaration that Indonesia is an archipelagic state, but it turns out we have been land-oriented all this time,’ Andi Sofyan said in a written statement on Thursday. According to Andi, the Archipelagic Regions Bill is not intended to grant privileges to specific regions but to deliver affirmative policies so that archipelagic regions obtain equal opportunities in development. The regulation is expected to strengthen governance, public services, connectivity, regional potential management, and funding schemes suited to the characteristics of archipelagic regions. The urgency of the bill is increasingly evident given that around 28.5 million people live in ten archipelagic provinces, with approximately 3.7 million of them still living in poverty. ‘It is time we transform the strategic potential of archipelagic regions into a real contribution to the nation’s progress,’ he said. Meanwhile, Deputy Head of the DPD RI Archipelagic Regions Bill Working Team, R. Graal Taliawo, said the bill was born from the need to present a development paradigm that sees Indonesia as an archipelagic state with diverse regional characteristics. He explained that the development approach, which has tended to be land-oriented, has left many issues in archipelagic regions not optimally addressed. ‘This bill provides a perspective or thinking paradigm for the state in developing Indonesia based on diversity, especially archipelagic regions. To date, there has been no specific foundation for this state to develop archipelagic regions,’ he said. According to Graal, the main spirit of the Archipelagic Regions Bill is not to make regions more dependent on the central government but to strengthen regional capacity to manage their own potential, especially in the marine and fisheries sectors. With this approach, archipelagic regions are expected to grow as new maritime economic centres that provide direct benefits to the community while strengthening the national economy. ‘This bill is about maximising existing potential. We should not think that these regions should beg from the central government,’ he said. Graal also emphasised that the development of archipelagic regions cannot be separated from the state’s strategic interests. Prosperous border areas will serve as the front line in safeguarding Indonesia’s sovereignty while strengthening the country’s position as a maritime nation. The DPD RI hopes the deliberation of the Archipelagic Regions Bill can be completed soon, providing a legal foundation to accelerate equitable development, strengthen the competitiveness of archipelagic regions, and affirm Indonesia as an archipelagic state capable of managing its maritime potential fairly and sustainably. ‘One of the spirits of this bill is so that border regions can be empowered, become prosperous, and serve as a living defence for this nation,’ he concluded.