Jayapura District, Papua (ANTARA) - The Ministry of Social Affairs encouraged Indonesian youngsters from Papua to play an active role in preserving nature and the environment to protect Indonesia's easternmost region from disasters.
Speaking in Jayapura District, Papua Province, on Sunday, the ministry's secretary-general Robben Rico noted that his side had rolled out its Disaster Preparedness Cadets (Tagana) Go To School program at schools across the country, including Papua.
"The main objective of this program is to invite those from the younger generation, particularly students, to become partners of Tagana," he remarked.
Rico explained that Tagana members are tasked with assisting the government in taking the requisite measures before, during, and after a disaster.
He then added that the cadres are also mandated to help the government build people's awareness by disseminating information on what to do to prevent, survive, and recover from a disaster.
On that note, he urged youths to emulate Tagana's efforts in enhancing people's preparedness and alertness to potential natural disasters, saying, "Youngsters can become partners of Tagana by assuring people that the absence of nature preservation efforts will lead to disasters."
"Hence, we would like to call on Papuan youths to continue protecting nature and the environment in the hopes of averting a potential natural disaster as early as possible," he added.
The official then cited data from the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), pointing out that Indonesia has been struck by around two thousand natural disasters throughout the year.
"Bearing that in mind, we from the Ministry of Social Affairs invite youngsters to always safeguard Papua's nature, keeping its beauty in a bid to prevent natural disasters," he stated.
In view of this, he emphasized the need to protect forests, especially those located in Jayapura District.
