The Jayapura Mobile Legends tournament opened in Sentani on September 18 with a purpose that went beyond competition. Organized by the Jayapura Regency Investment and One Stop Integrated Services Agency, known as DPM PTSP, the two-day event was designed to give young Papuans a place to compete, learn teamwork, and discover opportunities in the growing digital economy.
The tournament brought together teams from Jayapura Regency, Jayapura City, Keerom, and Sarmi, with the event running on September 18 and 19 at the parking area of Hotel Suni in Sentani. The competition attracted 32 teams and hundreds of participants and supporters.
For the organizers, however, the screens and smartphones were only part of the story.
The larger objective was to create a meeting point between young people, esports communities, government, businesses, and local entrepreneurs.
That approach reflects a changing view of esports in Papua. What was once often regarded as mere recreational gaming is now increasingly recognized as an activity that fosters discipline, teamwork, creativity, and competitive skills, while also providing opportunities in content creation, event management, and other sectors of the digital economy.
DPM PTSP Head Gustaf Griapon said the tournament was deliberately designed to give young people a more active role in the digital economy.
“Mobile Legends is only the entry point,” Gustaf said. The broader aim, according to him, is to encourage young people to achieve, create, and recognize economic opportunities emerging from digital development.
September 18: The Tournament Opens
The tournament officially opened on Friday, September 18, with Jayapura Deputy Regent Harris Richard Yocku, who also serves as chairman of the Jayapura Regency KONI, formally launching the competition.
Yocku opened the event by beating a tifa, a traditional Papuan drum, marking the beginning of the competition.
His message to the players was simple: compete seriously, but do not lose the values that should accompany sport.
He encouraged participants to maintain togetherness, teamwork, and sportsmanship throughout the tournament.
That message was also linked to a wider concern about young people’s relationship with the digital world.
Yocku said the tournament should not become an activity in which participants interact only through screens while neglecting relationships in everyday life. Instead, he encouraged the players to take the values of cooperation and friendship developed through the competition into their daily lives.
Kilas Papua reported that Yocku described the tournament as more than a gaming event. He said it could provide education for children and young people about collaboration, cooperation, and responsibility.
The emphasis is notable because esports is often discussed primarily in terms of entertainment or competition.
In Sentani, the local government sought to give it a more social role.
A Tournament With 32 Teams
The scale of the event was larger than previous esports competitions organized in the area.
Gustaf said 32 teams participated, with each team consisting of five active players and one substitute. Jubi reported the resulting total at 190 participants, while advance publicity had described the tournament as involving 160 players based on five players per team.
The difference comes from how the participants were counted.
The competition itself involved five players from each team at a time, producing 160 active players across 32 teams. The post-opening report from Jubi indicated that the total number reached 190 when including substitutes and other participants.
The growth was nevertheless clear.
Gustaf said earlier events had generally attracted only around 10 to 15 teams. The participation of 32 teams indicated growing interest among school-age young people and other youth in esports.
The participating area also extended beyond Jayapura Regency.
Players came from Jayapura City, Keerom, and Sarmi, turning the competition into a regional gathering rather than a narrowly local event.
That regional dimension is relevant for the development of Papua’s esports community.
Young players who might otherwise interact mainly within their own neighborhoods or online communities gained an opportunity to meet competitors from other parts of the region.
Sport, Discipline, and Teamwork
Gustaf’s stated objectives went beyond finding a winning team.
He stated that the tournament aimed to foster sportsmanship, creativity, discipline, and teamwork. The organizers also saw it as a way of building positive interaction between the Jayapura Regency Government, young people, communities, businesses, and the wider public.
Those qualities are particularly relevant to team-based esports.
A Mobile Legends match requires players to coordinate roles, communicate quickly, and make decisions collectively. A player who acts independently without regard for teammates can undermine the entire team.
For the organizers, those habits can have value outside the game.
The tournament was therefore presented as a setting where young people could experience competition while learning how to communicate, accept responsibility, and work toward a shared objective.
The chairman of the organizational division of the Papua provincial esports association, Zaki, also described esports as a potential positive space for young people.
He said the activity could help change the perception that playing Mobile Legends was necessarily negative and instead demonstrate how gaming could be developed into an achievement-oriented activity.
That shift in perception is one of the central themes of the event.
The Government Brings Its Services to the Players
There was another unusual element at the tournament.
The DPM PTSP did not simply organize the competition. It also used the event to introduce its public services to young people.
At booths around the venue, the agency presented information about investment, business services, and licensing procedures.
Among the issues introduced was the Jayapura Regent’s circular concerning Building Approval, or Persetujuan Bangunan Gedung, known as PBG.
The idea was to bring government information closer to a demographic that might not normally visit a government licensing office.
Gustaf described the event as an opportunity for young people to play, interact with businesses, and at the same time learn about government services.
This approach also gives the tournament a civic dimension.
For young people interested in starting a business, understanding licensing and administrative requirements can be an important first step.
For government agencies, meanwhile, events such as esports competitions offer an alternative channel for public outreach.
Instead of waiting for citizens to come to an office, the agency brought its services to a location where young people were already gathering.
Fifteen MSMEs Join the Competition
The tournament also created a space for local micro, small, and medium enterprises, or MSMEs.
Around 15 MSMEs participated during the event, selling food, drinks, and other products to participants and visitors.
Participants were encouraged to use the MSMEs facilities available at the venue rather than bringing their own food and drinks.
For local entrepreneurs, the tournament offered something that a conventional government event might not provide: a concentrated audience of young people, families, esports supporters, and members of the wider community.
Gustaf said the intention was to make the event useful to more than just players.
When young people came to compete, local businesses could also promote products, interact with customers, and generate transactions.
The event therefore became a small experiment in combining sports and local commerce.
Esports as a Digital Economy
The economic argument goes beyond the 15 businesses present at the venue.
Gustaf views esports as part of a wider ecosystem involving players, coaches, event organizers, content creators, media, technology companies, sponsors, and creative industries.
That ecosystem can create opportunities for young people who may not become professional players themselves.
A player may eventually become a coach. Another may develop into a streamer or content creator. Someone else may work in tournament production, graphic design, marketing, event management, or technology.
This broader ecosystem is why Gustaf argues that young people should not remain spectators in the digital economy.
He wants them to become participants, creators, and entrepreneurs.
The distinction is important.
Not every young person who enjoys gaming will become a professional esports athlete, just as not every child who plays football becomes a professional footballer.
Organized competitions can create an environment that transforms interests into skills.
For Papua, where policymakers are increasingly discussing the development of young people’s capabilities and creative industries, that distinction could become significant.
A Message About Avoiding Negative Activities
Yocku also linked the tournament to efforts to encourage young people toward positive activities.
Kilas Papua reported that he believed events of this kind could help reduce negative behavior among young people and encouraged the organizers to continue holding similar activities because of the high level of interest.
The point was not that gaming alone solves social problems.
Rather, the local government was using an activity that already attracts young people’s attention to create a structured environment around it.
There was competition, supervision, interaction, public education, and community participation.
That framework is different from unstructured gaming at home.
It also allows adults, government institutions, and community organizations to engage with young people through an activity that they already understand and enjoy.
The Esports Community in Papua is Expanding Beyond Sentani
The participation of players from several parts of the region could be one of the tournament’s most important outcomes.
Jayapura Regency, Jayapura City, Keerom, and Sarmi each have their own youth communities. Bringing them into a common competition creates opportunities for new relationships.
For the players, it provides experience against unfamiliar teams.
For organizers, it creates a clearer picture of the size of the regional esports community.
For government, it offers an opportunity to understand where youth interests are developing.
Gustaf’s observation that the tournament was significantly larger than previous events suggests that demand is growing. The challenge now lies in sustaining that interest through regular competitions, training, and institutional support.
A single tournament can generate excitement.
A sustainable esports ecosystem requires more.
Building a Path From Hobby to Achievement
The tournament also raises a larger question about how Papua can develop young talent in emerging fields.
Traditional sports such as football, athletics, swimming, and rowing have already established structures for identifying and training athletes.
Esports is newer.
Its development requires a different combination of skills and infrastructure, including reliable internet connectivity, appropriate venues, event organizers, coaches, and opportunities to compete.
The Jayapura tournament does not by itself create that entire system.
But it provides a local example of how government, communities, and businesses can work together around youth interests.
That is why the statements from the organizers focus repeatedly on achievement, creativity, and opportunity rather than simply entertainment.
The aim is to change the conversation around gaming from how much time young people spend playing to what skills and opportunities can emerge when gaming is organized responsibly.
The Role of Government and Business
The involvement of DPM PTSP is particularly relevant because its core responsibilities are connected to investment and public services rather than sports.
By entering the esports space, the agency is effectively using youth culture as a channel for economic and administrative outreach.
Businesses and sponsors were also given space to interact with participants.
The combination creates a three-way connection between government, young people, and the private sector.
The government provides the platform and public information.
Young people provide participation and creativity.
Businesses and MSMEs bring products, services, and commercial opportunities.
Gustaf said the model could help promote creative economic development and create opportunities for investment in Jayapura.
The concept is clear, but we still need to measure the longer-term impact.
An esports event can function as a small economic ecosystem rather than a standalone competition.
Why the Event Matters for Papua’s Youth
Papua’s young population is growing up in a rapidly changing digital environment.
Smartphones, online games, and social media have become part of everyday life. Government institutions therefore face a practical question: how can digital interests be directed toward activities that build skills, relationships, and economic opportunities?
The Jayapura tournament offers one local answer.
It does not attempt to reject gaming culture. Instead, it brings gaming into an organized setting where competition is combined with sportmanship, teamwork, entrepreneurship, and public education.
That may be particularly relevant for young people who are more comfortable engaging through digital platforms than through traditional government programs.
The tournament creates a setting where government officials can meet them on familiar ground.
Conclusion
The Jayapura Mobile Legends tournament has demonstrated how an esports competition can become more than a contest on a smartphone screen.
Organized by DPM PTSP Jayapura Regency on September 18 and 19, the event brought together 32 teams from Jayapura and surrounding areas, alongside approximately 15 MSMEs and representatives of the business community.
For Deputy Regent Harris Richard Yocku, the event was an opportunity to teach young people about cooperation, responsibility, and positive interaction while encouraging them to maintain sportsmanship.
For Gustaf Griapon, Mobile Legends was a gateway to something broader: developing young people’s confidence, creativity, and ability to recognize opportunities in the digital economy.
The tournament also brought government services directly to young participants, allowing DPM PTSP to introduce licensing and investment information while local MSMEs used the event to promote products and reach customers.
The most important question now is what comes next.
If interest continues to grow, Jayapura could develop a more structured esports ecosystem involving regular competitions, coaching, community development, content creation, and digital entrepreneurship.
That would turn a two-day tournament into the beginning of something more durable.
For Papua’s young generation, the value of esports may ultimately lie not only in who wins a match but also in what participants learn when the game ends.
Competition can teach discipline. Teamwork can build confidence. Digital skills can open new economic paths. And a gathering around a popular game can create connections between young people, government, and local businesses.
In Sentani, the smartphone screen was only the starting point.
The larger ambition is to give young Papuans a place to compete, create, and see themselves as active participants in the region’s emerging digital economy.
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