Prabowo Says Disaster Mitigation Budget Must Be Increased

September 7, 2026 | 05:11 pm

President Prabowo Subianto delivered a speech at the 2026 Annual Session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) and the Joint Session of the House of Representatives (DPR) and Regional Representatives Council (DPD) at the Parliament Complex in Jakarta on Friday, August 14, 2026. Tempo/Martin Yogi Pardamean

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Prabowo Subianto has called for a significant increase in Indonesia’s disaster mitigation budget as the government responds to a series of natural disasters across the country.“We must be ready to face situations like this at any time. This is also a lesson for us and for the government I lead: the budget allocation for disaster mitigation must be increased significantly,” Prabowo said Monday, September 7, 2026.Prabowo made the remarks while opening a virtual limited meeting on disaster management from Merdeka Palace in Jakarta.Indonesia is currently dealing with several disaster situations, including the magnitude 7.7 earthquake in Flores, East Nusa Tenggara, Mount Anak Krakatau’s volcanic activity, forest and land fires, and haze.Prabowo said Indonesia’s location in the Pacific Ring of Fire leaves the country vulnerable to various natural disasters and requires the government to prepare resources before emergencies occur.He instructed State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi to coordinate with Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa and National Development Planning Minister Rachmat Pambudy to draw up disaster mitigation plans based on having resources above minimum requirements.“More helicopters are better, more water pumps are better, and more fire engines are better. So we are ready before an incident occurs,” Prabowo said.He also called for more small excavators to be made available at the village level, particularly in areas that frequently experience forest and land fires.Prabowo ordered the preparation of a comprehensive disaster mitigation master plan, including additional equipment and facilities for responding to forest and land fires.Aircraft for Disaster ResponsePrabowo also said the government plans to use an Italian aircraft carrier that is expected to join the Indonesian Navy for disaster response operations.The vessel would be modified to support helicopter and drone operations and could accommodate up to 10 medium-sized helicopters, each capable of carrying around four to five tons of water for aerial firefighting, he said.The government also plans to increase the use of aircraft for weather modification operations. Prabowo asked the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) to study which materials would be most effective for the technology.“We need to prepare for mitigation, not wait for an incident to happen. We have to prepare well in advance,” he said.The meeting was held as authorities continue to respond to the Flores earthquake, Anak Krakatau’s volcanic activity and forest and land fires in several parts of Indonesia.Read: Prabowo Reviews Response to Multiple Disasters in Virtual Meeting