Samarinda blooming into metropolitan city

Nurni Sulaiman ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Samarinda   |  Mon, 06/30/2008 10:50 AM  |  The Archipelago

In 1668, a Bugis Wajo tribe from the Goa sultanate arrived in Kalimantan and fell under the power of the Kutai ruler. They went into exile for renouncing the Bongaja Treaty.

The Kutai sultanate welcomed them and asked them to assist in expelling the Dutch colonials and were later allowed to reside in the lower reaches of the Mahakam River, what is now called Samarinda.

Samarinda is the capital of East Kalimantan and it celebrated its 340th anniversary this year.

The hub of the sultanate then was Tenggarong, now Kutai Kartanegara regency.

Samarinda is made up of six districts and 53 subdistricts. The districts include Samarinda Ilir, North Samarinda, Samarinda Ulu, Samarinda Seberang, Sungai Kunjang and Palaran.

Each year, Samarinda records a swell in the number of its urban dwellers, who make up 5 to 7 percent of the population. Based on the latest figure in February 2008, its population is now 637,548.

Samarinda is inhabited by various ethnic groups, such as the Bugis, Banjar, Madurese, Javanese, Kutai and Chinese, with Islam the predominant religion, followed by Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism and Confucianism.

It spans 718 square kilometers and borders Kutai Kartanegara. Geographically, Samarinda has a flat and hilly contour.

Before the city was granted regional autonomy, it saw rapid development, recording impressive growth in regional initiated revenue (PAD) ever since.

Its PAD in 2001 stood at Rp 33.2 billion (US$3.6 million), and it reached Rp 97.4 billion in 2007. It has set its PAD target at Rp 103.25 billion this year.

The municipal budget allocation amounts to Rp 2.16 trillion this year.

The largest contribution to the PAD is from taxes. In 2007, the biggest tax earnings were derived from building permits amounting to Rp 11 billion and were set at Rp 13 billion this year.

Residents of Samarinda have entrusted the city leadership to Mayor Achmad Amins, who was instrumental in transforming Samarinda into an industrial and trade center during his two terms in office.

One of its landmarks is the Citra Niaga traditional market, which won the international Aga Khan Award for architecture. It functions as a trade center where transactions involving small, medium and large-scale traders take place.

Other major trade centers include the Lembuswana and Samarinda Central Plaza.

Samarinda is home to a number of four-star hotels, such as the Hotel Bumi Senyiur and Mesra International Resort.

It is also home to Mulawarman University, the only state-run university, dubbed as an education icon in East Kalimantan.

Samarinda has two cultural icons -- the Kampung Dayak Pampang, located in North Samarinda, and Kampung Bugis in Samarinda Seberang.

The local community in Kampung Bugis is well known for its fine hand-woven fabric, the Samarinda sarong, while in the Kampung Dayak resides the ethnic Dayak tribe.

Kampung Dayak is the easiest to reach, as it is only 45 minutes from Samarinda city.

Development in Samarinda is not only physical. Mayor Achmad Amins has provided free basic education from elementary to junior high school and scholarships for needy but talented students to pursue their university studies.

The municipality has also exempted low income families from medical expenses and provided assistance to city residents for child birth.

"We envision Samarinda as an industrial and residential city that offers good services and is environmentally friendly," Amins said. "To achieve what we have required several strategies, such as optimizing our natural and human resources," he said.

Samarinda is located on the banks of Mahakam River and is dubbed Kota Tepian, city on the banks. The Tepian acronym is short for teduh (leafy), rapi (neat), aman (peaceful) and nyaman (comfortable).

Located next to the river, the city is susceptible to seasonal floods. However, Vice Mayor Syaharie Jaang expressed recently it would seriously tackle the issue.

"Floods come during certain seasons, depending on sea and rainfall levels. In anticipation of the floods, we have improved the city's drainage system, restored the northern part of the city by preserving catchment areas, repairing dams and building buffer zones," Jaang said.

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