Indonesia has a new province, North Kalimantan (Kalimantan Utara) on the Island of Borneo. The 34th Indonesia Province was born last week and is neighbouring Brunei and Malaysia.
JAKARTA- it has long been considered as a sleeping giant but it is not anymore, according to a recent speech of Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhyono (SBY) last October during a trip to the Island of Borneo (Kalimantan). Although the North Borneo achieved high standards of living and development in its northern part – which in fact belong to both Brunei and Malaysia-, Indonesian northern was still fully underdeveloped due to the complexity of administration in the country. How to be sure to empower local communities in Northern Kalimantan when infrastructure continues to isolate the province and poverty remains rampant?
After a three-year moratorium on the formation of new regions, Indonesia is creating its 34th province, North Kalimantan, to ensure effective governance in a key border area. The region has been carved out of the existing province of East Kalimantan.
The area is rich with natural and mineral resources such as oil, gas, coal, and a bulky swath of rainforest home to a high level of biodiversity. Agun Gunanjar Sudarsa, chairman of the legislative commission that oversees autonomy and regional governments, said Indonesia must ensure effective governance in areas prone to border demarcation issues or encroachment.
The formation of a new provincial administration will likely improve public services in the remote region and border areas far from Samarinda, capital of East Kalimantan. Residents may currently find it easier to access goods or services from the Malaysian border, a phenomenon with potential to erode nationalism of citizens living in border regions, Agun said.
The new province will encompass five areas currently within East Kalimantan province: the districts of Nunukan, Malinau, Bulungan, and Tana Tidung and Tarakan City.
It will have autonomy to administer an area including much of East Kalimantan’s 20-million-hectare forest area, comprised of 14.65 million hectares in conservation areas and 4.7 million hectares in cultivation areas.
However, before developing their own plan, administration officials will have to refer to East Kalimantan’s existing provincial forestry plan laid out from 2010 to 2030, and a 10-year regional action plan for curbing greenhouse gas emissions, he said.
Energy analyst Kurtubi said that although not known to be as rich in oil and gas as neighbouring East Kalimantan district Kutai Kartanegara, its four districts are believed to have abundant resources. Tarakan City has been an oil city since the Dutch colonisation era began in 16th Century.
Inhabitants from the new province however acknowledges that infrastructure development is badly needed in the region but it could also speed up the rate of environmental degradation and deforestation if it is goes unmonitored. “The locals need to be consulted so they can determine their prerequisites in safeguarding their traditional land in order to ensure their livelihoods,” a spokesperson from the new province explained to news service “Khabar”.
(Source : Khabar, Southeast Asia)
Luc Citrinot a French national is a freelance journalist and consultant in tourism and air transport with over 20 years experience. Based in Paris and Bangkok, he works for various travel and air transport trade publications in Europe and Asia.
