Wamena, Indonesia – The Papua Highlands Provincial Government is stepping up efforts to strengthen the competitiveness of local micro, small, and medium enterprises (SMEs) by providing business capacity-building programs in Wamena, Jayawijaya Regency.
Organized by the Provincial Office of Cooperatives and SMEs, the initiative focuses on improving digital business skills, product branding, and institutional development to help indigenous Papuan products expand into the national market.
The empowerment program is financed through the Special Autonomy Fund (Otsus), reflecting the provincial government’s commitment to increasing the productivity and quality of flagship commodities produced by Indigenous Papuans (OAP).
Head of the Papua Highlands Office of Cooperatives and SMEs, Alpius Yigibalom, said the government aims to create opportunities for young entrepreneurs and business owners to develop their enterprises according to their own creativity and business models.
“We want to open a space for discussion so that young people and business actors can organize their businesses in their own way. The government has an obligation to translate policies into concrete actions to empower SMEs,” Alpius said.
In addition to strengthening entrepreneurial capacity, the provincial government is accelerating the establishment of the KP3 Cooperative as a collective economic institution that will consolidate and market local agricultural products through an integrated system.
According to Alpius, the cooperative will prioritize several key agricultural commodities.
“The commodities prioritized for the cooperative’s supply include Arabica coffee, vegetables, shallots, chili peppers, and tomatoes,” he explained.
He added that strengthening the agricultural sector is expected not only to improve farmers’ livelihoods but also to support regional food price stability. Higher local agricultural production, he said, will help control inflation while reinforcing the regional economy.
“We encourage the community to increase agricultural production again. If local production rises, prices can be controlled, inflation can be reduced, and the regional economy will become stronger,” Alpius added.
