Traditional Leaders Encourage Papuan People to Plant Sago as a Source of Carbohydrates Carbohydrates from sago, bananas and tubers are more deeply rooted in Papuan food culture. Red: Fuji Pratiwi

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, SENTANI -- Papuan traditional community leader Ramses Wally encouraged indigenous Papuan people to plant sago trees as a source of carbohydrates to replace rice. "We have always eaten sago, bananas, corn and tubers, so the existence of sago trees must be protected and cared for," said Papuan Traditional Leader Ramses Wally. According to Ramses, the existence of sago forests in Jayapura Regency, especially in the Yoboi, Simporo and Babrongko villages, is a legacy from their ancestors to the current generation. Ancestors have inherited the sago forest as the main food source for the Papuan people, especially Sentani. "So our task now is to protect and inherit it to the next generation," he said. He explained that currently increasingly rapid development requires indigenous communities to sell land where sago trees grow to sell and build housing. This is what the ondofolo (tribal leaders) in the Sentani region note about not selling hamlets or sago forests but how to ...