Jokowi Inaugurates Singkawang Airport in West Kalimantan

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi), on Wednesday, officially opened Singkawang Airport in Singkawang, West Kalimantan, that is expected to boost the mobility of residents and logistics from and to the city.

"We hope new economic growth spots will appear in Singkawang. I also told the transport minister that this airport should be a model to be emulated in other regions," Jokowi stated, as observed through the Presidential Secretariat YouTube channel.

He explained that apart from the state budget, the airport development is also funded through public-private partnership (KBPU) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) schemes from local entrepreneurs.

The president remarked that KBPU and CSR schemes can bolster national development if they are emulated in other projects, such as airports and sea ports.

"It means that residents of the city, of the district, of the province all contributed to the development of their region," Jokowi stated.

Citing a report from Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi, he highlighted that local entrepreneurs contributed Rp155 billion to the airport development. Meanwhile, the development cost of another Rp272 billion was disbursed from the state budget.

Jokowi also urged Sumadi to prepare airlines that will serve routes from and to Singkawang City, located in the western part of West Kalimantan.

"When the airport is ready, the transport minister should prepare the airlines serving flights from and to here as many as possible -- provided that the flights are assured to be full. I believe more airlines will open new routes to Singkawang," the president remarked.

Singkawang Airport was developed from 2019 to 2023 and is ready to serve flights in April 2024. The airport has a taxiway measuring 200 m x 18 m, an apron spanning 100 m x 50 m, a passenger terminal of 8,000 square meters, and a 312-square-meter cargo terminal.

The airport runway, initially having a length of 1,400 m x 30 m, was upgraded to two thousand meters, thereby allowing the airport to serve narrow-bodied planes, such as Airbus A320. The development of the runway and passenger terminal was funded through the CSR scheme.

Meanwhile, Public Works and Public Housing Minister Basuki Hadimuljono, State-owned Enterprises Minister Erick Thohir, and Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi accompanied the president during the airport opening ceremony.

ANTARA

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