Even though the PON is over, the promotion for Papuan MSMEs continues

Noken, is another term for bags that are well-known in the central mountainous areas and the northern coast of Papua. But in the land of Marind, or South Papua, noken is referred to as toware. Noken is made of knitted nylon yarn, wood fibers, orchid tree bark or swamp pandanus fronds. The price also varies. Some are only Rp. 100 thousand, but there are also those that reach 4 million rupiah.

Noken knitted from wood fiber costs between Rp. 100 thousand to Rp. 600 thousand, depending on the size. The small size 15x15 cm is pegged at Rp. 100 thousand, but for the large size noken, which is 40x40 cm, it is sold at Rp. 600 thousand. As for the yellow noken embroidered with orchid branches, the price reaches IDR 3-5 million with a size of 35x40 cm. Why is the type of noken from Paniai or Nabire more expensive? The craftsmen of typical Papuan souvenirs reveal that there are difficulties in getting orchid bark material.

However, in general, finding noken sellers during PON events is relatively easier than selling PON dolls. Even in the cities of Jayapura, Sentani, Merauke, as well as in Timika, when the PON took place, quite a number of noken sellers were found offering their wares around the venue, either by setting up tents or by setting up semi-permanent shops.

Even in Jayapura City, the Noken Festival at Taman Imbi will be held in conjunction with PON XX on October 2-15, 2021. In that place, dozens of Papuan women from the mountains held noken, headbands, bracelets, necklaces and other beads. Some of them even held their wares at the exhibition complex of 100 coffee MSME kiosks.

PON XX Papua by the local community is indeed used as a place to sell various kinds of needs for athletes, officials, and spectators. Some sell PON knick-knacks, such as t-shirts, hats, bracelets, key chains, pens, and some even sell Papuan specialties, such as cold papeda or papeda wraps.

Kangpho and Drawa Mascot dolls are also sold in various sizes and prices. Small size dolls (about 25 cm high) sell for between IDR 250,000–IDR 350,000 a pair. While the larger ones are sold for IDR 500,000 a pair. "We take goods from Cikampek and Bandung," said Maman (37), the doll seller.

Another Maman, another Usep (40). Usep has a "semi-official" outlet by renting a stall owned by the people of Kampung Harapan. It's not far from where Maman sells his wares. He rents land measuring 2x4 meters next to the sidewalk at a rental price of 200,000 rupiah per day. "Thank God, the rent can be covered," he said. During the few days of selling, he said, 800 dolls had been sold out of a total of 1,500 pairs that he had prepared.

Usep and Maman came from Bandung, West Java, with four colleagues. They arrived in Jayapura on October 4, 2021. They were selling PON dolls and t-shirts. "We were late because it was difficult to find flight tickets," he said.

In this Papuan PON, there are two PON mascots, namely Kangpo and Drawa. Kangpho and Drawa are two typical Papuan animals. Kangpho is an abbreviation of the golden mantle tree kangaroo, which is an endemic animal belonging to Papua's nature. While Drawa is in the form of a bird of paradise with the Latin name Paradisaea Raggiana. The Pon XX Papua logo and the two mascots actually contain many messages.

Along the sidewalk opposite the Enembe Sports Center, Papua PON shirts and hats are also sold. The price varies, from IDR 50,000 to IDR 200,000. There are also those who sell headbands (crowns) from Sentani bark, decorated with chicken feathers or cassowary feathers. The price varies from IDR 600,000 to IDR 800,000.

If Maman could sell on the sidewalk, Mama Tina would be different. He sells papeda wrap (cold papeda) behind the sidewalk. Seven packs of cold Papeda the size of a lemper are sold in one package with chili sauce and fried or grilled mujair fish. One package he sells for Rp. 50,000. “Papeda wrap is better eaten with cork fish. But it's still hard to find cork fish. Even if there is, the price is expensive," he said.

On the side of the road opposite the Lukas Enembe Sports Center, there are several people selling cold papedas. And all with a side dish of tilapia fish. And as compact, they said, that they were having trouble getting snakehead fish.

Please note, snakehead fish is endemic to Lake Sentani. In the market, this fish is relatively more expensive than other types of fish. For large species, it can reach Rp. 80,000--Rp. 100,000 per head.

The Jayapura Regency Government involved 266 MSMEs to take advantage of the XX Papua PON event. Of this number, 186 MSMEs belong to indigenous Papuans.

Yos Levi Yoku, Coordinator of the Socio-Economic Sub-Sector in Sector IV PB PON XX Jayapura Cluster said that so far the Jayapura Regency Government has been coaching 100 MSMEs and providing assistance. They are engaged in souvenirs, culinary, handicrafts, fashion, and so on. "To this day the number is still growing, and today our team is still working," said Levi.

Levi also explained that every day the PB PON XX socio-economic committee team in Jayapura Regency continues to carry out manual loading of goods and sales. Manual loading activities are carried out every day since MSMEs are placed. Reports are manually carried out online by MSMEs and the data is online.

"The committee team and volunteers provide assistance to MSMEs every day," he explained via Whatsapp messages.

Previously, in a press conference with the topic 'Development of MSMEs and Creative Economy in Jayapura Regency' at the Media Center of Kominfo PON Papua Cluster Jayapura Regency, Levi Yoku explained that long before PON was held, they had conducted training for MSME actors. In addition, they also get a business capital of IDR 5 million per MSME.

On that occasion Levi also said that the Jayapura Regency Government continues to encourage the MSME sector to rise and move up class. In that context, the Jayapura Regency Government also cooperates with the banking sector so that sector players gain access to financing in addition to being literate with digital payment systems.

“With the outbreak, we are trying to reduce the cash payment system. We encourage cashless payment systems. The goal is that they are also literate with digital developments," he said.

Even though the PON has ended, Levi explained, his party continues to carry out promotions and marketing through catalogs. The hope is that after PON ends, everything will continue. The program is facilitated by the socio-economic sector of PB PON. There is also cooperation with Telkomsel to market special products, such as chocolate.

"We are also building storefronts at hotels and airports that contain Papuan handicrafts. It is hoped that PON will be over but the economy will continue," explained Levi. The following is the published catalog of MSMEs in Jayapura Regency: https://bit.ly/CATALOG_UMKM

GRDP Increase

Bank Indonesia (BI) projects the growth of Papua's Gross Regional Domestic Production (GRDP) to increase to 1.10 percent, as a result of the 2021 Papua PON event. The growth is supported by the incessant construction sector and demand for accommodation and food and beverages.

A total of 21,687 people consisting of athletes, officials, and Papua PON match equipment spread across four clusters, namely Mimika Regency, Merauke Regency, Jayapura Regency, and Jayapura City, became the driving force for the Papuan economy. This number does not include the supporters of the XX Papua PON event, such as TNI/Polri personnel, construction workers, media, and volunteers.

That way, this time the XX Papua PON event will become the center of socio-economic activities that have a positive impact on the Papuan people. Assistant Director of BI Papua Representative Dwi Putra Indrawan gave an example, the construction of the Papua PON competition arena and infrastructure since 2016-2021 has grown the construction sector. The construction of various XX PON venues contributed to Papua's GRDP 0-2 percent of Papua's GRDP with the highest position in 2019, worth 1.5 percent.

SOURCE: https://indonesia.go.id/categories/kultur/3347/kendati-pon-usai-promosi-bagi-umkm-papua-berlanjut