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fter decades of negligence and ignorance, the central government is now focusing on developing East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), which is considered the poorest province in the country. The priority will be for the development of much needed infrastructure and on critical border regions.

'€œUpon observing the geographic and socioeconomic conditions here, East Nusa Tenggara has great potential to be developed into a tourism province and an economic hub for the region, particularly for neighboring Timor Leste,'€ Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Luhut Panjaitan said while speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the Mota Ain Border Post in Belu regency, NTT on Thursday.

Belu borders with Timor Leste'€™s Bobonaro district and the Mota Ain border post plays a vital role controlling the movement of people from both countries, particularly those of Timor Leste who rely on a supply of basic commodities from the Indonesian side.

'€œThe construction and revitalization of border posts is important for the smooth movement of people and goods to and from East Nusa Tenggara, as well as security management here,'€ Luhut said.

The government has committed to developing and constructing seven border posts in the next three to four years, three of which will be situated in NTT. The three are Mota Ain in Belu regency, Mota Masin in Malaka regency and Wini in Timor Tengah Utara regency.

Acting Belu regent, Willem Foni, told a gathering of East Nusa Tenggara provincial officials on Wednesday evening that the central government needed to consider the development of ports in NTT as part of its commitment to develop the province.

'€œIf the [central] government is committed to developing the economy of East Nusa Tenggara province, it should also help develop our ports here. Instead of directly transporting goods from Jakarta or Surabaya to Timor Leste, it would be better if our ports here act as hubs before the goods are transported to Timor Leste,'€ Willem said.

Currently, there are two ports near the Timor Leste border that could be developed and utilized as transportation hubs with the neighboring country. The two are Wini in Timor Tengah Utara regency and Atapupu in Belu regency.

Apart from sea ports, the central government is also planning to build an airport in either Belu or Timor Tengah Utara regency in order to help facilitate the flow of people, particularly to and from the province.

'€œI have talked about building an airport that can accommodate jet-propelled aircraft in either of the two regencies with the transportation minister [Ignasius Jonan] and he agreed with the idea,'€ Luhut said.

As part of its commitment to improving the province'€™s economy, the central government is committed to improving its agricultural sector by providing an ample supply of water for its plantations and agriculture-related products. The central and provincial governments are working on the development of seven dams throughout the province.

'€œOnce the province has a sufficient supply of water, it can proceed with efforts to turn itself into a significant cattle breeding center to help meet the whole nation'€™s demand for beef,'€ the minister said on his flight back to Jakarta.

He said he had talked with the Australian ambassador regarding possibly jointly operating a cattle breeding center in the province.

In an effort to solve the problem of frequent blackouts and increasing energy demand, the central government is also considering continuing long-delayed power generation projects in the province.

'€œThe projects have been on hold for four years now,'€ Luhut said.