Trans Papua Is Now Accessible, But Distribution Of Food Ingredients To Wamena Still Uses The Air Route

ILLUSTRATION/Wamena Airport. (ANTARA/Marius Frisson Yewun)

WAMENA - The Wamena Central Statistics Agency (BPS) in Jayawijaya Regency, Papua confirmed that the distribution of food from coastal areas to a number of districts in the central mountains of Papua still uses the air route or has not used the Trans Papua road.

Head of BPS Wamena, Jianto, said residents and traders have not dared to send food by land, even though the Trans Papua road can be used.

"In contrast to building materials, most of the food ingredients still pass by air because of the consideration that if the access is slow, the food is more prone to damage," he said as quoted by ANTARA, Friday, June 24.

According to him, the delivery of foodstuffs that are still by air makes food prices, although stable, still expensive, especially selling prices in the central highlands of Papua.

"So land access has not affected the price of basic commodities, so even if there is a land route, it has no effect on the price of basic goods. If we look at the airport, basic necessities are always unloaded," he said.

The distribution of basic goods by land is cheaper, but until now the work on the Trans Papua road has not been completed, so entrepreneurs have not dared to bring goods through this route.

"There was once a case where businessmen sent rice and eggs by land but they were damaged, so they prefer to go by air, which is fast and relatively safe, so when they got here they didn't lose a lot," he said.

Currently, according to Jianto, entrepreneurs only use the Trans Papua route for the distribution of building materials, because they are not easily damaged, although the journey can take one month.

"It is the same with fuel. There is no road yet. So the road is still in the construction sector," he said.