West Sulawesi
Province in Sulawesi, Indonesia
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Through Mining, Agriculture and Fishing
History
On 11 December 2019, a team of researchers led by Dr. Maxime Aubert announced the discovery of the oldest hunting scenes in prehistoric art in the world which is more than 44,000 years old from the limestone cave of Leang Bulu’ Sipong 4. Archaeologists determined the age of the depiction of hunting a pig and buffalo thanks to the calcite ‘popcorn’, different isotope levels of radioactive uranium and thorium.
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Geography
The West Sulawesi Province, borders the provinces of South Sulawesi and Central Sulawesi to the east, Makassar Strait to the west, and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The province also shares maritime borders with East Kalimantan and South Kalimantan to the west.
Gandang Dewata National Park, with its core at and around Gandang Dewata mountain, forms the centre of province. Karama River and Lariang River which rises in Donggala Regency of Central Sulawesi goes on to form part of the border between Central Sulawesi and West Sulawesi and enters the Macassar Strait just past the town of Lariang, are the major rivers which drain the province. Balabalagan Islands in Mamuju Regency are also part of the province. The islands rest on a coral reef, itself placed on an undersea bank which extends out from Kalimantan, presenting a major hazard to navigation; the Admiralty Pilot has warned that "No vessel should venture among [them] without local knowledge."
Economy
Its economy consists mainly of mining, agriculture and fishing.
Government and administrative divisions
West Sulawesi Province is divided into six regencies: Polewali Mandar, Mamuju, Pasangkayu, Mamasa, Majene, and Central Mamuju. The sixth regency - Central Mamuju Regency (Kabupaten Mamuju Tengah) - was cut out of the existing Mamuju Regency on 14 December 2012.
The province now forms one of Indonesia's 84 national electoral districts to elect members to the People's Representative Council. The West Sulawesi Electoral District consists of all of the 6 regencies in the province, and elects 4 members to the People's Representative Council.
Demographics
Its population at the 2010 census was 1,158,651 increasing at 2.67% annually. Of those 171,356 were classified as below the poverty line of Indonesia. The official estimate as at mid 2025 was 1,525,335, comprising 772,667 males and 752,668 females.
Religion
Transport
There are is no rail transport, or national and state highways. The roads are mostly unpaved dirt tracks. There are two airports in the province: Sumarorong Airport (Bandar Udara Sumarorong) at Sumarorong town in Mamasa Regency and Tampa Padang Airport (Bandar Udara Tampa Padang) at Mamuju town in Mamuju Regency. The major airport nearby is the Sultan Hasanuddin International Airport at Makassar in South Sulawesi Province - located a 9.5 hour drive from the capital of West Sulawesi, Mamuju.