The Trans Papua Road is a road connecting Papua from end to end. The road construction project was carried out during the administration of the President of the Republic of Indonesia, Joko Widodo. Trans Papua will be the main access for land vehicles that will cross the Papua region to accelerate the existing development process. Therefore, the president gave instructions for all people in Papua to jointly supervise the construction process of the Trans Papua Road so that it can be fully completed soon and can facilitate all activities in Papua. The President also hopes that in the future the people in Papua can utilize the road access for various positive activities that lead to development and community welfare.
Land access is one of the accesses that is indeed a priority for main development in Papua. When land access in the form of roads is available, other development will easily follow. For example, development in the aspects of education and health. When road access is easy and smooth, the construction of schools and hospitals will be easier. Large trucks carrying materials to build schools and hospitals will easily go to all areas of Papua, including areas in the interior of Papua that have not been touched by transportation. In addition, easy access will certainly facilitate the teaching and learning process in the field of education and also health services in the health sector.
Before the Trans Papua Road was built, the only possible access for anyone who wanted to visit the interior of Papua or visit from one end to the other was by air using a helicopter or small plane. Such transportation was considered too expensive and could not be reached by all levels of society. Therefore, development at that time was said to be hampered and Papua Province was left behind by other provinces in the Republic of Indonesia. The construction of the Trans Papua Road will accelerate the development process and make development throughout the Republic of Indonesia more evenly distributed and its positive impacts can be felt.
Another aspect affected by the construction of the Trans Papua Road is the economic aspect which can improve people’s welfare. A road that can connect Papua from one end to the other can make marketing of agricultural products from farmers or fish catches from fishermen can be marketed to all corners of Papua and automatically increase income for farmers and fishermen. The needs of the community will be more easily met and the prices circulating in the community will be more affordable because of easier access.
The hope from the construction of the Trans Papua Road is how community involvement will have a positive impact on the community itself. The community is expected to play a role in the construction of the Trans Papua Road, such as helping the government to facilitate the land clearing process, especially when the land to be built on is customary land. The communication and negotiation process also needs to be carried out positively, namely that the Trans Papua Road can still be built according to plan and can provide benefits to all people in Papua, including indigenous peoples.