Papua Governor Lukas Enembe instructed all Regional Apparatus Organizations in their environment to maximize labor-intensive programs in order to increase people's purchasing power.
The effort is an anticipatory step towards the economic level of Papua and even Indonesia which is currently sluggish due to the Covid-19 pandemic since 2019.
"Labor-intensive programs are seen as the best solution to boost Papua's sluggish economy".
"This program has been instructed by the governor to be implemented by Regional Apparatus Organizations," explained Assistant for Economic affairs and People Welfare of Papua, Muhammad Musa'ad, in Jayapura.
He said Papua's economic growth is actually higher than in other regions of Indonesia. However, the positive growth of Papua's economy due to the contribution of PT. Frerport Indonesia does not have an insignificant economic impact on society.
"Therefore, it is necessary to increase the absorption, both from the regional budget and the state budget. Well this absorption is also included by optimizing labor-intensive programs," he said.
Musaad added that in the era of adaptation of the new order of life in Papua today, people should be able to remain productive.
In a sense, local governments need to encourage people to be productive, among others by providing labor-intensive programs to increase purchasing power because otherwise the community will be further deteriorated by the current condition.
"Covid-19 is a danger, but it is not an excuse for people to do nothing. In essence, people should also remain productive, but still adhere to health protocols to be safe from Covid-19".
"But of course the government continues to support by programs such as labor-intensive to improve the economy," he said.