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Border areas should be source of pride: Jokowi
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President Joko ""Jokowi" Widodo (center) speaks to journalists during a visit to Entikong, Sanggau regency, West Kalimantan, on Wednesday. (Presidential Press Bureau/Intan)
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order areas must become the nation's pride as they are the windows that will show the image of the country. They represent Indonesia, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo emphasized after visiting the border post in Entikong, West Kalimantan on Wednesday.
Indonesia must show the world that it is a big country with a physical infrastructure that will become the pride of the nation.
"Border areas are both the windows and our front yards, so when people enter our country they will realize it is a big country," he said in a statement sent by presidential staff on Wednesday.
It is high time that development stopped being Java-centric and began to occur around the country's edge and border areas, such as in Kalimantan, East Nusa Tenggara and Papua, Jokowi said during his visit to Entikong in Sanggau regency.
Jokowi acknowledged that Entikong had been underdeveloped over the past 25 years and stood in in stark contrast with neighboring Malaysia in infrastructure and services.
Jokowi visited the border post to check in on the construction of the border post following his visit in January. The President pushed for the construction, which started in August last year, to be completed by the end of this year.
"I ensure you [the border post] will be bigger and better than the one in the past and it will be better than the one there [in Malaysia]," he said.
The construction of the border post in Entikong is expected to cost Rp 152.49 billion ($11,556,668.14).
The development will include a modern market to drive the local economy in Entikong and surrounding areas.
The construction of the border post in Entikong is seen as strategic because Entikong is the main gate for economic traffic between Indonesia and Malaysia.
Moreover, the revitalization of the border post also aimed to increase the affectivity of people and logistics mobility between the two countries.
Besides Entikong, there are border posts under construction in both Aruk and Nanga Badau in West Kalimantan.
Jokowi and First Lady Iriana visited Kalimantan from Tuesday through to Thursday in order to inaugurate several projects.
Jokowi is also scheduled to attend the inauguration of Juwata International Airport in Tarakan, North Kalimantan.
The revitalized airport has a longer runway, 2,250 meters in length and 45 meters in width, to serve aircraft such as Boeing and Airbus. The airport currently serves 40 flights to and from Jakarta, Surabaya, Balikpapan, Makassar and small cities such as Berau, Nunukan, Malinau and Tanjung Selor in Kalimantan, with a passenger capacity of 3,000 people per day.
During his visit to Kalimantan, Jokowi also inaugurated the Pak Kasih Tayan Bridge in Sanggau, West Kalimantan. Linking West and Central Kalimantan and forming part of Trans Kalimantan road, it is the longest bridge in Kalimantan. (rin)
