Bandung, April 1-2, 2026 — Strengthening planning, monitoring, and evaluation is essential to ensuring that Papua’s Special Autonomy (Otsus) development programs respond effectively to local needs and deliver measurable benefits for communities. This issue was at the center of a national regulatory workshop hosted by Kementerian PPN/Bappenas, where Nurrohman Wijaya, Ph.D., a senior lecturer at the School of Architecture, Planning and Policy Development (SAPPK), Institut Teknologi Bandung (ITB), contributed as an expert speaker. The workshop, entitled “Workshop to Gather Expert Input for the Drafting of the Draft Minister of National Development Planning/Head of Bappenas Regulation on Guidelines for SIPPP Usage and the Revision of the Minister’s Regulation on the Special Autonomy Development Planning Meeting (Musrenbang) for Papua Province,” was held on April 1–2, 2026, at the Courtyard by Marriott Bandung Dago. The forum brought together government officials and academic experts to provide technical and policy input for strengthening the regulatory and implementation frameworks governing Papua’s Special Autonomy development planning and funding.
Strengthening Grassroots Input in Special Autonomy Planning
On the first day, Dr Nurrohman delivered a technical presentation titled “Strengthening the integration of outcomes from Village and District Development Planning Meetings (Musrenbang) into Special Autonomy planning and budgeting.” His presentation focused on strengthening the connection between community-level planning and provincial development planning and budgeting. He emphasized the importance of ensuring that the priorities and aspirations identified through Musrenbang Kampung and Distrik are systematically captured, verified, and integrated into higher-level Otsus planning processes.
Particular attention was given to ensuring that the development needs of Orang Asli Papua (OAP) are adequately represented using reliable, disaggregated data. Dr. Nurrohman highlighted the potential role of the Sistem Informasi Percepatan Pembangunan Papua (SIPPP) in supporting this integration and improving the traceability of planning information from the village level to provincial decision-making.
Advancing Outcome-Based Monitoring and Evaluation
The second day shifted the discussion toward monitoring and evaluation. Dr. Nurrohman presented “Strengthening the Monitoring and Evaluation Framework for the Implementation of RAPPP Based on Outcomes and Development Impacts,” emphasizing the need to move beyond conventional assessments focused primarily on budget absorption and administrative outputs. His proposed framework highlighted several priorities: 1) Strengthening accountability and collaboration: aligning monitoring mechanisms with SDG 16 and SDG 17 through transparent governance, reliable data, and cross-sectoral collaboration; 2) Expanding evidence-based digital monitoring: optimizing the SIPPP dashboard and incorporating geotagged documentation, including GPS coordinates, photographs, and videos, to strengthen project verification and monitoring; 3) Addressing geographical and data challenges: recognizing connectivity limitations in remote and mountainous areas while improving the availability of development data disaggregated for OAP communities; and 4) Enhancing institutional capacity: strengthening the capacity of regional government officials to assess not only financial and administrative compliance, but also the qualitative outcomes and longer-term impacts of development interventions.
Learning from Regional Best Practices
To complement the proposed framework, Dr. Nurrohman also shared examples of policy and monitoring practices from other Indonesian provinces. These included disability-inclusive policies in Central Java, the integration of Gender Equality, Disability, and Social Inclusion (GEDSI) indicators in West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), and the Simonev Digital monitoring system in Lampung. These experiences provided comparative references for developing a monitoring and evaluation framework that can be adapted to Papua’s distinctive geographical, institutional, and socio-cultural conditions.
Supporting More Inclusive and Evidence-Based Development
Dr Nurrohman’s two-day contribution provided technical perspectives on integrating spatial information, digital systems, participatory planning, and outcome-based evaluation more effectively into Papua’s Special Autonomy development framework. His participation reflects SAPPK ITB’s commitment to contributing academic expertise to national policy development. By connecting spatial planning and regional development perspectives with digital governance and evidence-based monitoring, the engagement supports efforts to strengthen development planning in Papua that is more inclusive, accountable, and locally responsive.
