You may be a bit confused about West Papua and Papua New Guinea. Some people even think that they are the same by saying West Papua New Guinea. The truth is that both of them are different. Check the following information to know the difference between West Papua and Papua New Guinea.
Difference Between West Papua and Papua New Guinea
Language
West Papua and Papua New Guinea use different languages. The official language of West Papua is Indonesian and a little bit of Papuan Malay. You will see that people in Papua New Guinea speak English. They also use local languages, such as Hiri Motu and Tok Pisin. Based on the data, Papua New Guinea has over 800 languages. So, Papua New Guinea has more languages compared to West Papua.
Government
The Governmental system is another difference between West Papua and Papua New Guinea. West Papua is not a country, so this island doesn’t have a governmental system. West Papua follows the Indonesian governmental system since it is a province of Indonesia. Indeed, the governmental system in West Papua is different compared to Papua New Guinea.
Papua New Guinea is a country separated from Indonesia. That’s why this area has an independent government, including the legislative system and Prime Minister. Instead of depending on Indonesia, Papua New Guinea follows the United Kingdom governmental system.
Population
Indeed, as a country, Papua New Guinea has a bigger population than West Papua. In 2018, the population of Papua New Guinea reached up to 8.6 million, whereas West Papua only has around 963.000.
Religion
The religion of these two areas seems to be the same, but they are not. According to the historical context, West Papua was colonized by the Dutch. Dutch also sent Protestant missionaries there. That’s why most of the Papuans are Protestant.
Before that, Portuguese explorers who were also protestant came to West Papua. 53% of Papuans in West Papua are Protestant. Papua New Guinea has a variety of religions. West Papua also has around 38% of the Islamic population due to the influence from Indonesia.
26% of people in Papua New Guinea are Roman Catholic, whereas 18% of the population is Lutheran. Around 12% of Papuans also believe in Seventh Day Adventist and 10% of them are Pentecostal. There is no Muslim in Papua New Guinea. Plus, most of them combine their religions with local traditional religions.
Economy
Papua New Guinea is identical to Tembagapura. This area is one of the largest copper resources in the country. Gold is another main mineral resource there. This country even has Petroleum in the central highlands of Papua New Guinea and natural gas in the Fly-Kikori.
In contrast with the resources, most Papuans in Papua New Guinea are farmers. They often grow yams, taro, sago, and bananas. Some of them also grow crops, including coffee, cacao, and copra.
West Papua also relies on mining and agriculture sectors. The difference is that this province has Raja Ampat Regency as one of the most popular tourism destinations. This island also introduces the beauty of Cendrawasih Bay National Park.
The explanation above shows that West Papua and Papua New Guinea are two different islands, although they are using the word Papua. The difference between West Papua and Papua New Guinea above also explains what makes these two islands different. It means there is a new traveling destination you need to explore soon.
Now, you can’t say that exploring Raja Ampat means that you are visiting Papua New Guinea because it is in a different location. Indeed, you should explore West Papua and Papua New Guinea if you get a chance. Then, you can learn the difference between West Papua and Papua New Guinea by yourself.
