JAKARTA — Six governors from the Papua region held an audience with the Director General of Fiscal Balance to question and follow up on President Prabowo Subianto's promise regarding the return of Special Autonomy funds.

During the meeting, the President's promise to restore Rp12.69 trillion in Special Autonomy funds was ultimately realized by the central government through the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Indonesia, as conveyed by Director General of Fiscal Balance Askolani, S.E., M.A., in Jakarta on Monday (April 13, 2026).

Papua Governor Matius D. Fakhiri expressed appreciation and gratitude to President Prabowo and the Ministry of Finance for the realization of the funds, which he said strongly supports the people of Papua.

He stressed that this policy is proof of the central government's commitment to supporting development in the Land of Papua.

"It is hoped that this will accelerate development and improve the welfare of the Papuan people through Special Autonomy funds," Matius Fakhiri said.

Furthermore, Fakhiri explained that, in accordance with the direction of the Minister of Finance as conveyed through the Director General of Fiscal Balance, the Papua Provincial Government will immediately take strategic steps.

One of these steps is preparing a well-developed program plan to be submitted to the relevant ministries.

"The planning will focus on implementing the use of Special Autonomy funds effectively and on target, so that the benefits can be felt directly by the community," Fakhiri said.

"We want to ensure that the Special Autonomy funds conveyed by the President can be implemented properly and truly reach the people," he added.

Meanwhile, responding to the issue of budget efficiency, Fakhiri said that the policy not only affects Papua but is also being felt by all regions in Indonesia.

"We understand the current conditions, which demand concrete steps, one of which is through a budget efficiency policy. However, we also need development for the people of Papua, one of which is through the President's policy of adding Special Autonomy funds," he added.

With the realization of these Special Autonomy funds, the government hopes that development programs can run more optimally and be able to address various basic needs of the people in the region. ***