Indonesia boosts development in border areas, minister affirms

In his statement in Jakarta on Saturday, he noted that President Prabowo Subianto has instructed him, Housing and Settlement Minister Maruarar Sirait, Statistics Indonesia (BPS) Head, Amalia Adininggar Widyasanti, and all parties to address housing issues and boost development in border areas.

Recently, the minister, along with Minister Sirait and the BPS head, visited the Siau Tagulandang Biaro Islands to ensure the handling of houses damaged by recent floods.

Karnavian explained that the Ministry of Housing and Settlement has a program dedicated to rehabilitating uninhabitable homes in border areas.

The Siau Tagulandang Biaro Islands District has been selected for the program in response to the impact of floods on the local community, as well as the area’s relatively high poverty rate.

Furthermore, he emphasized that this policy is part of the government’s broader strategy to strengthen border regions by improving public welfare while bolstering defense and nationalism.

“This is part of efforts to maintain border areas as a security and defense buffer zone, while ensuring social justice to foster a stronger sense of nationalism,” he remarked.

In line with its commitment to boosting border area development, the Indonesian government aims to renovate around 15,000 uninhabitable homes in border areas this year. Of the total, 1,000 homes are allotted for the Siau Tagulandang Biaro Islands District.

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Translator: Fianda Sjofjan, Raka Adji