The Depapre Sea Toll Program is the driving force for the Papuan economy

​Papua Province is an area with geographical conditions that are quite expensive to reach, the article is that to be able to arrive on Cenderawasih Earth, you still have to spend quite a bit of money.

From the island of Java, for example, to Papua can only be passed by air and sea transportation. With the high cost of the two modes of transportation, the price of goods in the area called "a little paradise that fell to earth" is certainly quite draining the pocket.

For this reason, the government needs to continue to review policies and programs that can at least be an alternative or solution to the problem of the high price of goods in Papua.

The Sea Toll Road is one of the breakthroughs of many programs prepared by the government to overcome the high price of goods in Papua.

Precisely on January 28, 2020, the government finally inaugurated the trial operation of the Sea Toll Road at the Depapre Port, Jayapura Regency, Papua.

The Papua Provincial Government (Pemprov) stated that the existence of the Jayapura Regency Depapre Sea Toll Road is a stimulant for the economy of the Cenderawasih community, so that all parties, especially business actors, are invited to take advantage of this opportunity.

"Especially the people at the port location are also expected to provide full support by maintaining the facilities or vital objects of this country properly for the benefit of the people in Papua," said Assistant for the Economy and People's Welfare of the Papua Provincial Secretariat Muhammad Musaad.

The Port of Depapre officially operates as a container port and serves the sea toll route. The inauguration was marked by the docking of the Logistik Nusantara (Lognus) 2 sea toll ship operated by PT Pelni.

The Sea Toll Route that enters the Depapre Port is a new route (route T-9) which includes Merauke-Kokas-Sorong-Supiori-Depapre Jayapura Regency (round trip).

The concept of the Sea Highway is to accelerate the distribution of logistics materials that are connected to several ports with the principle of loading and unloading, meaning that there are staple commodities brought from one area and other commodities brought back, so as to reduce distribution costs or costs.

For example, rice from Merauke before the Sea Highway had to be brought to Surabaya first, and then shipped back to Jayapura. However, with the Sea Toll Road, rice from Merauke no longer has to go to Surabaya, but can go directly to Jayapura for later distribution to various areas in the central mountains or northern Papua region.

Upon returning from Jayapura, you can then fill in superior commodities from Jayapura or the surrounding area, such as sand and other materials which are difficult to obtain in Merauke as well as other commodities, thereby reducing price disparities and being able to compete with other commodities originating from outside Papua. or West Papua.

With the opening of the Depapre Port, which has been under construction since 2009 as an alternative port in addition to Jayapura City, it can also stimulate the economic sector in the local area, especially in the port area.

The Port of Depapre itself is a multipurpose wharf II with a length of 150 meters, a cement pier of 206 meters, a pier of 124 meters of liquid bulk and a container pier of 206 meters in a shady bay area. Liaison in the Pacific region.

So far, most of the rice consumed by Papuans comes from Surabaya and Makassar. If possible, rice from the Bumi Cenderawasih barn, namely Merauke Regency, also contributes.

Unfortunately, before arriving in Jayapura, rice from Merauke Regency must stop by several provinces in Indonesia so that the distance traveled is quite time-consuming.

From an economic perspective, this is very detrimental so that the existence of the Sea Toll Road through the Depapre Port can cut the route and shorten the arrival time from Merauke to Jayapura.

This was confirmed by Perum Bulog, Regional Office of Papua and West Papua, where it appreciated the operation of the Sea Toll Road at the Port of Depapre in Jayapura Regency because it could facilitate the distribution of basic commodities for the community, such as rice.

"We have been looking for a solution for a long time on how to distribute good quality rice from Merauke Regency," said Head of Operations and Public Services of Perum Bulog, Papua-West Papua Regional Office, Mohammad Yusri Muin.

So far, the rice supply in Merauke Regency is in surplus, so this excess stock must be distributed to other places.

With the cooperation of various related parties such as the Department of Transportation, Bulog to the local government, finally this rice from Merauke can arrive in Jayapura without having to go through Surabaya.

So far, rice from Merauke Regency has to go through the Makassar and Surabaya routes before arriving in Jayapura, but with the Depapre Sea Toll Road, it can directly arrive at the Jayapura Port.

"The amount of rice sent from Merauke is around 400 tons," said Yusri.

With this shipment of rice from Merauke, the total supply of rice for Papua reached 2,200 tons because initially the stock in the Bulog warehouse was only 1,800 tons.

In addition, PT Pelindo IV (Persero) Jayapura Branch said that the operation of the Depapre Sea Toll Road eventually shortened the distribution route for basic goods or commodities from Sulawesi and Java.

General Manager of PT Pelindo IV Jayapura Branch Sonny Uktolseya said the trial operation of the Port of Depapre was very good and even an extraordinary achievement, because this was a fairly good collaboration between the Jayapura Regency Government and related agencies both at the Central and Regional levels.

The visit of KM Logistik Nusantara 2 which transports containers filled with rice from Merauke Regency which is operated by PT Pelni is a T-19 TOL dedicated to and from Papua.

This effort is of course to distribute basic needs that can be reached by the surrounding community at an affordable price as well.

This is also to shorten the distribution route which is usually from Sulawesi and Java.

For the Port of Depapre, facilities are still limited, especially loading and unloading equipment, especially if in the future it is to be operated as a port/container terminal, it is necessary to add adequate facilities to facilitate loading and unloading activities at the Port of Depapre.

This requires a fairly large investment, where for now the Port of Depapre is still under the supervision of the Port Authority and Class II Jayapura Port Authority as an extension of the Indonesian Ministry of Transportation.

Meanwhile, economic opportunities are always there, but it is necessary to sit together between relevant agencies both in the Central Government and Regional Governments, because operating a port is not as easy as imagined, because there are many regulations and rules that need to be implemented and implemented for the safety of activities at the port itself.

"In the future, all supporting infrastructure and superstructure will be the main priority to maintain the existence of Depapre Port. We hope that the surrounding community can support this program with sincerity, for the welfare of all parties," said Sonny.

SOURCE : https://www.antaranews.com/berita/1979727/program-tol-laut-depapre-penggerak-roda-ekonomi-papua