20 January 2023
Youth and Sports Minister Zainudin Amali expressed the hope that Papua Football Academy (PFA) will provide lessons for other regions in developing football in Indonesia.
Papua Football Academy is a football academy based in Timika and is fully sponsored by PT Freeport Indonesia as part of the company’s commitment to develop human resources in Papua. PFA was created at the initiative of President Joko Widodo in addressing the potential of sports, including football, in Papua. President Joko Widodo personally officiated at the launching of Papua Football Academy on 31 August 2022 in Jayapura.
Now Sports Minister Amali is again commending PFA and the role it plays in the development and character building of its students by the academy’s trainers and operators. “I welcome the presence of Papua Football Academy that is supported by football stakeholders in Indonesia, in particular PT Freeport Indonesia," Sports Minister Zainudin Amali averred. "I have received numerous favorable reports about how the children in PFA are developing, in particular with regard to their attitude and mindset.”
Amali said addressing character building and mindset shaping is a crucial part of the development of footballers in the nation. Early training in football techniques for young children must be followed with the strengthening of their characters for the better. To boot, Zainudin said, for Papuans football is an integral part of their sense of honor and dignity, which must be protected and defended along with their arts and culture.
As such, he hopes that what PFA is accomplishing will be similarly applied in other provinces. “Just before the official launching by President Jokowi, I was among those who heard the presentation made by Freeport management by way of Claus Wamafwa regarding PFA’s roadmap and the direction its development is taking. It was very clarifying,” the Sports Minister, who hails from Gorontalo recounted. "That is why it is my hope that the existence of PFA will serve to teach other regions how to develop football in Indonesia,”
Applying Filanesia in PFA’s curriculum
Amali also mentioned how Filanesia (the philosophy behind football in Indonesia) is applied in the curriculum of Papua Football Academy, which is headed by Director Wolfgang Pikal.
He voiced the hope that this Indonesian football philosophy will be applied and developed in a consistent, continuous, and systematic manner. “This is a factor that is our weakness in achieving successful development of football. I have been countlessly informed by various people about the inconsistency in our development of football,” Amali said.
As such, Amali hopes PSSI as the nation’s football federation will not have to seek overseas comparisons and will adopt the management style of Papua Football Academy for other regions. “I thank my long-time friend, PT Freeport Indonesia President Director Tony Wenas, for his support and attentiveness to early development in football in Indonesia through PFA,” he reiterated.
The occasion of Indonesia’s Sports Minister meeting with FIFA President Gianni Infantino at Merdeka Palace in October 2022 and just before the World Cup 2022 finals in Doha, Qatar is said to have afforded further opportunity for developing Indonesian football. "Gianni Infantino said he wants make Indonesia the epicenter of football in Asia. This is an opportunity we must capture towards strengthening development of football in Indonesia. The presence of PFA is one way to achieve this,” Zainudin Amali asserted.
Kami menghimbau para pencari kerja untuk berhati-hati dan mewaspadai beragam modus penipuan perekrutan yang mengatasnamakan PT Freeport Indonesia. Dalam setiap proses rekrutmen dan penerimaan karyawan, PT Freeport Indonesia maupun konsultan rekruitmennya tidak memungut biaya apapun.
Untuk melihat lowongan, silakan akses melalui link berikut: ptfi e-recruitment
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