Indonesia Wildfires: Govt Prepares Additional Disaster Funds
Jakarta. Indonesia’s government is ready to increase funding for efforts to contain forest and land fires in Kalimantan if the needs on the ground exceed the available budget, Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa said Wednesday.
The government is awaiting a formal funding request from the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), which currently has about Rp5 trillion ($282 million) available for disaster response --including earthquake, flooding and other disasters--, Purbaya said.
“They haven’t asked yet. But we have the budget ready. They have Rp5 trillion. If that’s not enough, we’ll add more,” Purbaya told reporters at the Finance Ministry in Jakarta on Wednesday.
Purbaya said the government has yet to determine the total cost of the firefighting operation because the response is still underway. BNPB is conducting an assessment to determine the overall needs, including additional resources required in affected areas.
The Finance Ministry is prepared to release additional funds once BNPB submits its request, he said.
“We always have the money ready. It just depends on what BNPB’s operations require,” Purbaya said.
He also urged officials to ensure disaster-response funds are used properly and warned against inflating costs.
“Yes, as long as they don’t mark it up,” he said.
Purbaya said disaster-response funding is handled through a mechanism different from allocations for regular government programs, allowing the government to provide additional resources as emergencies develop.
The government is awaiting BNPB’s assessment before determining the additional funding required. The fires in parts of Kalimantan remain active, while authorities continue firefighting and efforts to protect affected communities.
BNPB’s initial 2026 budget was set at Rp491 billion and was later increased to about Rp1.05 trillion following budget adjustments.
Meanwhile, The Forestry Ministry had previously proposed an operational budget of around Rp290.9 billion for forest and land fire prevention and response
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