ABSTRACT
The Province of West Sulawesi (Sulawesi Barat, sometimes known as Sulbar) is the 33rd and most recently created province of Indonesia, formed from South Sulawesi (Sulawesi Selatan) on 5 October 2004. This new province stretches along the central western coast of Sulawesi, in the north-west of the south-eastern peninsula largely occupied by South Sulawesi. It runs up with the mountains to the Central Sulawesi (Sulawesi Tengah) border in the north and north-east. South Sulawesi lies to the east and south-east. West Sulawesi lies along the Strait of Makassar, jutting westwards, so that south of the province is the curve of Mandar bay. Beyond the deep waters of the strait, to the west, lies the island of Kalimantan (Borneo). The terrain of West Sulawesi is mountainous, the highest peak being Gandadiwata (3,074 m). There are coastal plains in the south and north-west, subsiding into swamplands further north.
