Serasan Integrated Cross-Border Post Expected to Support Economic Growth in Border Areas

INDUSTRY.co.id - The Government has announced plan to designate Integrated Cross-Border Post of Serasan in Natuna regency, Riau Islands province as a new economic growth hub in border areas. For the record, the development of the cross-border post is mandated in Presidential Instruction Number 1 of 2019 on Acceleration of Development of Eleven Integrated Cross-Border Post and Supporting Infrastructure Facilities in Border Areas.

“The cross-border post is not only an entry gate but also an engine of a regional economic growth center to improve the welfare of border communities,” Minister of Public Works and Public Housing Basuki Hadimuljono said as quoted from the Ministry’s website, Tuesday (22/6).

The cross-border post will also have a defense and security function in border areas. The Ministry kicked-off the construction on 5 November 2020 with the completion expected on 27 February 2022. The progress of physical construction has reached 31.02 percent.

To improve the quality of its services, the cross-border post will be provided with a number of facilities, including a goods warehouse, a transit warehouse, a mess facility and on-site guesthouse, administrative offices, water towers, a car wash, official residence, guard posts, a powerhouse, a waste management facility, a pump house, and other supporting facilities.

The total contract value for the construction of the Serasan Cross-Border Post is Rp133.1 billion, sourced from the 2020-2022 multi-year State Budget. The Serasan cross-border post is a cross-border post located in the sea and can only be accessed with sea transport.

Therefore, apart from paying attention to regulations on state buildings and green buildings, special attention is needed in its operation and maintenance. From the existing data, the number of people passing the cross-border post is around 30 people per week. However, this post gives strategic values as the outermost gate of Indonesia due to its location that is adjacent to Vietnam and Cambodia to the north and Singapore and Malaysia to the west and the east.

In the future, the post will also serve as a harbormaster’s office to support supervision of sea transportation. The post is located about 536.61 kilometers from Sri Bintan Pura Harbor, Tanjung Pinang City.

The development of the cross-border post is a tangible manifestation in developing Indonesia from the periphery in order to maintain the sovereignty of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia.

For this reason, infrastructure development is not only concentrated in the island of Java or in big cities, but also in border areas and on the outermost islands of the archipelago, including in Natuna regency in Riau Islands.