The Papua provincial authority has committed to providing a Rp10-billion (US$670 thousand) grant for the three new provinces of South Papua, Central Papua, and Papua Pegunungan.
Assistant for economic affairs and people’s welfare of the Papuan regional secretary, Muhammad Musa’ad, informed that the grant would be allocated from the amended provincial budget this year.
“The grant will be provided (to the three new provinces) for three years from 2022 to 2024,” he said here on Friday.
The grant is intended to support the governance of the three new provinces, which were carved out from Papua province, he added.
“The grant for the three newly established provinces will be presented by the Papuan provincial authority next November,” he informed.
The grant will be managed in the so-called mini provincial budget, as the budget will be enforced only until the year-end, Musa’ad added.
Meanwhile, head of the New Autonomous Region Assistance Task Force’s first working group, Sri Handoko Taruna, said that his side will continue preparing all aspects needed to ensure smooth organization and governance in the three new autonomous provinces.
The task force is still identifying other necessary aspects for the new provinces’ governance, including devising a mini provincial budget for the October–December 2022 budget, he informed.
“The mini provincial budget will also be supported by a grant from four constituent provinces of South Papua, and we have inked the grant agreement for the next three months,” Taruna disclosed.
Last June, the House of Representatives (DPR) approved the legal basis for the establishment of the three new provinces of South Papua, Central Papua, and Papua Pegunungan.
Source: Antara News