Eastern regions to have railways
Eastern regions to have railways
Antara, Pontianak
The government is set to improve land transport in eastern
Indonesia, as part of efforts to accelerate development there.
A one-day Kalimantan-Sulawesi Regional Coordination Forum held
in Pontianak, West Kalimantan on Saturday produced a 13-point
plan on how to encourage economic development. Two points focused
on developing the regions' transport infrastructure.
The Ministry of Transportation has pledged to hold seminars on
railway networks for Kalimantan and Sulawesi for two months
starting in June.
"A railway study of the area is necessary in order to get a
better picture of how railway development in eastern Indonesia
could fit into national railway affairs," head of the research
and development division at the Ministry of Transportation, Cucuk
Suryo Suprojo, was quoted by Antara as saying at the forum.
Director general of spatial plan affairs at the Ministry of
Resettlement and Regional Infrastructure, Syarifuddin Akil, said
land transport projects in Kalimantan needed a total of Rp 8.4
trillion (US$840 million).
The forum also agreed to put forward an Integrated Economic
Development Zone (Kapet) plan to kickstart development.
The gathering was attended by nine provincial administrations
in the regions and was aimed at coordinating local plans, because
the eastern regions do not receive as much attention as Java and
Sumatra.
State Minister for the Acceleration of Development in Eastern
Indonesia Manuel Kaisiepo said at the forum that the severe lack
of institutional, infrastructural support had contributed to
underdevelopment in the regions.
He explained his office had completed a general strategy for
the regions' development based on the characteristic of each
region.
But, he added, the public have to be informed of the strategy.
The government has also earmarked Rp 153 billion from the
state budget plus Rp 40 billion in compensation for the fuel
price hike to establish offices for maritime affairs in eastern
provinces.
"The budget is 115 percent greater than last year," said a
director general at the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and
Fisheries, Sumpeno Putro.