Tourism Ministry Hopes Baliem Valley Festival Preserves Cultural Values

The Indonesian Ministry of Tourism (Kemenpar) hopes that the Baliem Valley Cultural Festival (FBLB) will continue to preserve the cultural values and customs of the indigenous people of the Baliem Valley in Jayawijaya Regency.

Deputy Tourism Minister Ni Luh Enik Ermawati, in a written statement from Wamena on Sunday, said the FBLB serves as a platform for the regional government to help maintain the culture and customs of the Baliem Valley community amid modern developments.

“We hope the Jayawijaya Regency Government will continue to hold the FBLB, because through this event the cultural values and customs of the local community are safeguarded and preserved, and outsiders can come to know and appreciate the richness that exists in Indonesia, particularly in Papua,” she said.

According to her, the seriousness of the Jayawijaya Regency Government in maintaining the festival, which has now been held 34 times, means that in 2026 it will be included in the top 10 of the Karisma Event Nusantara (KEN).

“This is an extraordinary achievement for the Jayawijaya Regency Government, which has maintained the FBLB for 34 editions held every year,” she said.

“We want this festival to continue not just for decades but for a hundred years to come, so that the FBLB can still be carried out and passed on to our children and grandchildren,” she added.

She further stated that the Ministry of Tourism is ready to collaborate and support every festival organised by regional governments across Indonesia, including in Papua, specifically Highland Papua.

“We believe that tourism grows not only from the natural and cultural wealth a region possesses but also from the attractions presented to visitors. Festival activities like this can generate extraordinary economic movement for the general public, the government, as well as cultural practitioners and MSMEs who can all feel the economic benefits,” she said.