JAYAPURA (15 December 2023) – Minister of Social Affairs Tri Rismaharini encourages the empowerment of Papuan through various trainings organized by Ministry of Social Affairs as well as providing business capital assistance.  One of the empowerment activities carried out was training 34 pottery craftsmen in Abar Village and Kayo Batu Village, Jayapura, which for generations have been traditional pottery-producing areas in Papua.

The training is carried out to improve the skills of craftsmen from just making pottery to various ceramic items with various motifs and high quality.  Training is carried out starting from selecting and processing clay raw materials, making various ceramic items, coloring, and firing at very high temperatures to marketing.

Minister of Social Affairs Tri Rismaharini enthusiastically saw the beautiful works of the participants on display at Jayapura Center for Social Welfare Education and Training (BBPPKS) on Thursday (14/12).

"Look at this, in just a short training the results are like this. This is beautiful, really good," praised Social Affairs Minister Risma when she saw the work of the ceramic craftsmen.  Minister Risma also appreciated the enthusiasm and courage of craftsmen in innovating after seeing the various types of ceramics being made, such as bowls, plates, glasses, mugs, ashtrays, vases, decorative ornaments, and other works.

"This is great, they dare to innovate, and the quality is very good," said Minister Risma in appreciation when she saw the work of a container with a lid shaped like a bird's head.

Social Affairs Minister Risma also reminded participants not to quickly become complacent.  Even though their results are now quite good, they must continue to learn and develop their techniques.  From production, participants must learn to manage finances as well.

"Don't stop learning. Later you also have to learn to manage your finances. There is still a long way to go, come on, ladies, young people, everyone can do it," said Minister of Social Affairs encouragingly.

To encourage the enthusiasm of craftsmen, Minister of Social Affairs Tri Rismaharini ordered 2,500 mugs for employees at Ministry of Social Affairs office.  Likewise, the Papua Provincial Social Office, Jayapura City Social Office, buys goods from Papuan craftsmen.

The ceramic training, which was held from 1 to 14 December, involved 2 instructors who were flown directly from Bandung.

Yudi Hendrata, one of the instructors, gave a thumbs up to the enthusiasm of the residents to take part in the training.  "They are very enthusiastic about learning. And they learn quickly. Even the mothers, when they get serious, forget to eat. I am satisfied with the results of this training," said Yudi.

Not only training, Minister of Social Affairs also provided entrepreneurship assistance to 8 residents with an assistance value of IDR 5 million per person.  The assistance provided is in the form of material capital to produce cakes, donuts, drinks, and basic food stalls.

Public Relations Bureau
Indonesian Ministry of Social Affairs