Pemprov Papua Dorong Kemitraan Petani Cabai dan UMKM Lokal

JAYAPURA – Pemerintah Provinsi Papua mendorong terbentuknya kemitraan antara petani cabai di Kabupaten Keerom dengan pelaku usaha pengolahan pangan guna memperkuat pemasaran hasil pertanian lokal.

Kepala Dinas Tenaga Kerja, Koperasi dan UKM Papua Jimmy Thesia mengatakan cabai yang dihasilkan petani Keerom memiliki kualitas yang baik dan berpotensi menjadi bahan baku bagi industri pengolahan pangan di Papua.

Menurutnya, salah satu tantangan yang dihadapi petani saat ini adalah panjangnya rantai distribusi yang memengaruhi harga dan daya saing produk di pasar.

“Kami ingin hasil produksi petani bisa terhubung langsung dengan pelaku usaha sehingga manfaat ekonominya lebih besar dirasakan masyarakat,” ujarnya di Jayapura.

Ia menjelaskan kebutuhan cabai untuk industri pengolahan pangan di Papua masih cukup besar. Karena itu, pemerintah berupaya memperkuat keterhubungan antara petani, koperasi, dan pelaku usaha agar pasokan bahan baku dapat terpenuhi secara berkelanjutan.

Salah satu contoh produk lokal yang terus berkembang adalah usaha pengolahan sambal yang telah memasarkan produknya hingga luar Papua. Kondisi tersebut menunjukkan peluang pasar bagi komoditas cabai lokal masih terbuka luas.

Jimmy menambahkan koperasi diharapkan berperan sebagai penghubung antara petani dan pelaku usaha sehingga distribusi hasil panen menjadi lebih efisien.

Selain cabai, Pemerintah Provinsi Papua juga terus mendorong pengembangan komoditas unggulan lainnya seperti kopi, kakao, vanili, dan sagu untuk memperkuat ekonomi masyarakat dan UMKM di daerah. ***

JAYAPURA – The Papua Provincial Government is encouraging the establishment of partnerships between chili farmers in Keerom Regency and food-processing business actors to strengthen the marketing of local agricultural products.

Head of the Papua Manpower, Cooperatives, and SMEs Office, Jimmy Thesia, said chili produced by farmers in Keerom is of good quality and has the potential to become raw material for the food processing industry in Papua.

According to him, one of the challenges currently faced by farmers is the long distribution chain, which affects prices and product competitiveness in the market.

"We want farmers' production to be directly connected with business actors so that the economic benefits can be felt more widely by the community," he said in Jayapura.

He explained that the demand for chili in Papua's food processing industry remains quite high. Therefore, the government is working to strengthen connectivity among farmers, cooperatives, and business actors so that the supply of raw materials can be fulfilled sustainably.

One example of a growing local product is chili sauce, with processing businesses marketing their products beyond Papua. This condition shows that market opportunities for local chili commodities remain widely open.

Jimmy added that cooperatives are expected to play a role as a bridge between farmers and business actors, making the distribution of harvests more efficient.

In addition to chili, the Papua Provincial Government also continues to encourage the development of other leading commodities such as coffee, cocoa, vanilla, and sago to strengthen the economy of communities and MSMEs in the region. ***