BALINEWSID.COM, JAKARTA — Indonesian Interior Minister Muhammad Tito Karnavian said awards for high-performing regional governments are intended not only to recognize achievements but also to encourage local administrations to improve public services and strengthen disaster response.

Tito made the statement during the 2026 Outstanding Regional Government Awards, Batch II for the Maluku-Nusa Tenggara Region, held in Jakarta on Thursday (Sept. 17, 2026).

According to Tito, the awards are accompanied by government incentives that will be transferred to the respective regional administrations. The funds can be used to strengthen public services and support disaster management.

“The funds are additional support, not for individuals. They will be transferred to the respective regional government accounts and can be used as needed. I saw that many of the recipients were from Flores, and the funds can also be used for disaster response,” Tito said.

The incentives complement additional Unexpected Expenditure (BTT) funds provided by President Prabowo Subianto, particularly for disaster management.

Tito said the additional BTT allocated to East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) Province and eight regencies on Flores Island totaled Rp200 billion, or twice the amount initially proposed by the Ministry of Home Affairs.

“So Mr. Melki [NTT Governor Melki Laka Lena] seems to have a thicker wallet now to help with disaster response,” Tito said.

Rp760 Billion Allocated for Wildfire Response

The Interior Ministry has also proposed additional BTT funding for regions affected by forest and land fires.

Tito said the proposal had been approved by the president, with Rp760 billion subsequently transferred to four provinces in Kalimantan and three provinces in Sumatra.

“This is for handling forest and land fires. We have also reported this to Mr. Jumhur [Environment Minister]. We are strengthening the regions, particularly in terms of funding and budgets,” Tito said.

Four Award Categories

The 2026 Outstanding Regional Government Awards cover four categories: access to and quality of health services, public access to education services, the three-million-housing program, and waste management under the Indonesia ASRI initiative.

The awards are organized across six regions: Sumatra, Kalimantan, Java-Bali, Sulawesi, Maluku-Nusa Tenggara, and Papua.

Tito said regional governments that did not receive awards this time should use the program as motivation to improve their performance and compete in future rounds.

He emphasized that the awards were not merely symbolic recognition, as recipients could also receive fiscal incentives.

“For those who have not received an award, hopefully this will motivate them to improve. The award does not only provide a trophy, but also fiscal incentives,” Tito said.