Merauke Regency is a

regency A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

in the far south of the Indonesian province of

South Papua South Papua, officially the South Papua Province ( id, Provinsi Papua Selatan), is an Indonesian province located in the southern portion of Papua, following the borders of Papuan customary region of Anim Ha. Formally established on 11 November 2 ...

. It covers an area of 46,791.63 km², and had a population of 195,716 at the 2010 Census and 230,932 at the 2020 Census; the official estimate as at mid 2021 was 231,696, comprising 121,078 males and 110,618 female inhabitants. The administrative centre is the town of

Merauke Merauke is a large town and the capital of the South Papua province, Indonesia. It is also the administrative centre of Merauke Regency in South Papua. It is considered the easternmost city in Indonesia. The town was originally called Ermasoe. It ...

; this was projected since 2013 to become an independent city (''kota'') separate from Merauke Regency, but the alteration has been deferred. It is also the provincial capital of

since 2022.

History

The regency formerly covered a much wider area of southern Papua, but much of the area was split off on 12 November 2002 to form the new Regencies of Asmat, Mappi and Boven Digoel. These regencies have in 2022 been re-grouped to form the new

Province.

Administrative districts

Merauke Regency comprises twenty districts (''distrik''), listed below with their areas and populations at the 2010 Census and the 2020 Census, together with the official estimates as at mid 2021. The table also includes the location of the district administrative centres, the number of administrative villages in each district (rural ''desa'' and urban ''kelurahan'') and its post code.

Forests

Much of the area of Merauke Regency is covered by

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

s. MIFEE (Merauke Integrated Food and Energy Estate) is a project for use of a big area for industry and also palm oil and

food crops A crop is a plant that can be grown and harvested extensively for profit or subsistence. When the plants of the same kind are cultivated at one place on a large scale, it is called a crop. Most crops are cultivated in agriculture or hydroponics ...

agriculture including land grabbing. MIFEE is supported by the national government. There is much indigenous opposition to the MIFEE project. The MIFEE project is expected to cover a 1.2 million hectare area, or a quarter of Merauke. The project threatens conservation areas, such as virgin forests and water catchment areas, as well as the habitat of indigenous peoples in Papua. There were substantial forest fires. By May 2011, Indonesian government allocated around two million hectares in the regency to 36 national and international corporations for oil palm, timber, and sugarcane enterprises.

References

External links

*
Statistics publications from Statistics Indonesia (BPS)
{{South Papua Regencies of South Papua

History

Administrative districts

Forests

See also

References

External links