Indonesia is the largest archipelagic country in the world consisting of thousands of islands with abundant natural resources. In its government structure, Indonesia is divided into several levels of administrative regions starting from villages/sub-districts, sub-districts, districts/cities, to provinces. In this article, we will discuss about number of provinces in Indonesia today along with related interesting information.
Number of Provinces in Indonesia
Currently, Indonesia consists of 34 provinces which consists of large islands such as Java, Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and Papua as well as small islands around them. Each province has its own government led by a Governor and the Regional People's Representative Council (DPRD) as the people's representatives at the provincial level.
Provinces in Indonesia
The following is a list of 34 provinces in Indonesia and their capital cities:
- Aceh – Banda Aceh
- North Sumatra – Medan
- West Sumatra – Padang
- Riau – Pekanbaru
- Jambi – Jambi
- South Sumatra – Palembang
- Bengkulu – Bengkulu
- Lampung – Bandar Lampung
- Bangka Belitung Islands – Pangkal Pinang
- Riau Islands – Tanjung Pinang
- DKI Jakarta – Jakarta
- West Java – Bandung
- Central Java – Semarang
- IN Yogyakarta – Yogyakarta
- East Java – Surabaya
- Banten – Attack
- Bali – Denpasar
- West Nusa Tenggara – Mataram
- East Nusa Tenggara – Kupang
- West Kalimantan – Pontianak
- Central Kalimantan – Palangkaraya
- South Kalimantan – Banjarmasin
- East Kalimantan – Samarinda
- North Kalimantan – Tanjung Selor
- North Sulawesi – Manado
- Central Sulawesi – Palu
- South Sulawesi – Makassar
- Southeast Sulawesi – Kendari
- Gorontalo – Gorontalo
- Maluku – Ambon
- North Maluku – Sofifi
- West Papua – Manokwari
- Papua – Jayapura
Development of the Number of Provinces in Indonesia
Since Indonesian independence in 1945, there have been changes in the number of provinces in Indonesia. Initially, Indonesia only consisted of 8 provinces, namely North Sumatra, West Sumatra, Riau, Jambi, North Sulawesi, Central Sulawesi, South Sulawesi and Southeast Sulawesi. However, along with the development of time and the need for equitable development, the number of provinces in Indonesia has increased to the current number.
The biggest change occurred in 2000 when the expansion of provinces was carried out in several regions in Indonesia. New provinces were established to improve public services, develop infrastructure, and maintain the cultural diversity and customs of the people in each region.
The Role of Provinces in Regional Autonomy
Regional autonomy is the concept of giving authority to autonomous regions to regulate and manage their own government affairs in accordance with their own initiatives and based on the aspirations of the local community. Provinces have an important role in implementing regional autonomy in Indonesia.
Provinces are responsible for coordinating development in their regions and providing public services to the community. Apart from that, provinces also have the authority to make certain policies that are specific to that province. With regional autonomy, it is hoped that there will be equal distribution of development throughout Indonesia and an even increase in community welfare.
New Provinces in Discourse
In several regions in Indonesia, there is talk of expanding new provinces to support development and better public services. One example is the discourse on the expansion of Papua Province into two provinces, namely Papua and Central Papua. This is done to accelerate development in remote and outermost areas and to bring government services closer to the community.
The discourse on the expansion of new provinces also emerged as an effort to strengthen the cultural identity and customs of the local community. However, the process of expanding provinces is not easy and requires approval from various parties as well as an in-depth study regarding the social, economic and political impacts of the expansion.
Conclusion
The number of provinces in Indonesia currently is 34 provinces each of which has diverse natural, cultural and development potential. These provinces have an important role in carrying out regional autonomy and accelerating development to achieve community welfare throughout Indonesia. The discourse of creating new provinces also continues to be a topic of discussion in several regions as an effort to improve public services and strengthen local identity.
By having a good understanding of the number of provinces in Indonesia and their roles, it is hoped that the public can better understand the dynamics of development in the country and play an active role in the development of their respective regions.
