Tuesday, January 16, 2018

1) Social affairs ministry sends food to tackle measles, malnutrition in Asmat


2) Freeport Indonesia Pays First Dividend in Three Years
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https://en.antaranews.com/news/114288/social-affairs-ministry-sends-food-to-tackle-measles-malnutrition-in-asmat
1) Social affairs ministry sends food to tackle measles, malnutrition in Asmat
Reporter:  

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Ministry of Social Affairs has sent food to tackle the extraordinary outbreaks of measles and malnutrition in Asmat District, Papua.

Social Affairs Minister Khofifah Indar Parawansa, through a written statement received by ANTARA on Tuesday, announced that 16 thousand packages of canned food, valued at Rp725 million, had been sent to Papua on Sunday (Jan 14) and has been gradually distributed to the affected communities in Asmat since Monday (Jan 15).

In addition to food, the ministry has also sent logistics assistance, including three tons of rice, 200 blankets, 200 mattresses, two family tents, and 50 food wares.

"As a first step, food was sought from areas adjacent to Asmat," Parawansa stated.

A total of 63 children have died from measles, along with malnutrition, in Asmat in the last four months.

The outbreaks occurred in six districts of Asmat District. Since September 2017 till date, a local hospital in Asmat had reportedly cared for hundreds of measles patients. A total of 393 people were treated as outpatient and 175 as inpatients.

Parawansa explained that people living in the Agats Disctrict, which is the capital of the regency, have been supported by the Family Hope Program (PKH) and rice social assistance (Rastra) programs since 2016. In Agats, as many as 371 families receive the social aids.

Furthermore, the ministry has also provided funds worth Rp3.1 billion for the assistance of the remote indigenous community. The types of assistance provided include social settlement, life insurance, seedlings assistance, work equipment, and household appliances. 

Reported by Desi Purnamawati
(Y013/INE/B003)
EDITED BY INE 
Editor: Heru Purwanto

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2) Freeport Indonesia Pays First Dividend in Three Years

By : Adinda Normala | on 10:41 AM January 16, 2018
Jakarta. Gold and copper miner Freeport Indonesia – the local unit of US mining giant Freeport McMoRan – paid its first dividend in three years to the Indonesian government in 2017, a Finance Ministry official said on Monday (15/01).
Freeport paid the government – that has a 9.36 percent stake in the company – a dividend of Rp 1.4 trillion ($112 million) last year.
The miner operates one of the world's largest copper and gold mines in Papua, Indonesia's easternmost province.
Freeport, citing falling commodity prices, suspended its annual dividend payment in 2015 to strengthen its balance sheet.
"There was a dividend payment of Rp 1.4 trillion from Freeport [last year]," Askolani, director general for budgeting at the Ministry of Finance, said during a press conference.
"Freeport did not pay any dividend in the two years before that. We know they had a business problem and needed new investment, so they stopped paying," Askolani said.
Freeport decided to pay the dividend again thanks to improving commodity prices in the global market.
The Indonesian government earned Rp 44.5 trillion in dividends from various companies it has stakes in last year – 8 percent more than its original target of Rp 41 trillion.
Freeport Indonesia is one of the largest taxpayers in Indonesia, having paid more than $16 billion in royalties, taxes and dividends to the government between 1992 and 2015, according to data from the company.
In August last year, Freeport agreed to reduce its majority stake in the miner to 49 percent, build a local copper smelter and pay more taxes and royalties with hopes to extend its contract to operate the massive Grasberg mine until 2041.
Tough negotiations between the Indonesian government and Freeport on the contract are expected to continue until June.
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