265 Villages in NTB to Receive Aid Up to Rp 500 Million This Year
The Provincial Government of West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) has begun implementing the Desa Berdaya programme. This flagship initiative from the campaign promises of NTB Governor Lalu Muhamad Iqbal and Deputy Governor Indah Dhamayanti Putri will target 256 villages in the first phase in 2026.
NTB Governor Lalu Muhamad Iqbal stated that the distribution of aid under the Desa Berdaya programme will take place on Thursday (16/4/2026). Each village will receive aid of Rp 300 million to Rp 500 million, which will be transferred directly to the village accounts.
“Tomorrow, the distribution will begin. The hope is that these funds can be utilised as effectively as possible to reduce poverty rates in the villages receiving the aid,” said Iqbal via WhatsApp on Wednesday (15/4/2026).
The Head of the NTB Regional Planning and Development Agency, Baiq Nelly Yuniarti, explained that the hundreds of villages targeted by the Desa Berdaya programme this year consist of 216 villages in the absolute poverty category and 40 in the extreme poverty category. The NTB Provincial Government aims to provide aid to all villages in NTB.
“Our target by 2029 is to reach all 1,166 villages. However, we are dividing it annually according to fiscal capacity. So, for this year, we are targeting 256 villages,” said Nelly.
Nelly stated that each village will receive budget aid of Rp 300 million to Rp 500 million. The total budget for this year, sourced from the NTB Regional Revenue and Expenditure Budget (APBD), amounts to Rp 128 billion.
According to Nelly, villages in the absolute poverty category, or those included in the Thematic Desa Berdaya programme, will each receive Rp 300 million in budget aid. Meanwhile, villages in the extreme poverty category, or those in the Transformative Desa Berdaya programme, will receive Rp 500 million per village.
“The Rp 500 million aid is for extreme poverty villages that we have clustered, starting with 40 villages this year. However, the direct funds to the village are Rp 300 million. The additional Rp 200 million is in the form of aid for uninhabitable houses,” she clarified.
The NTB Provincial Government, according to Nelly, has set three main sectors as the focus for utilising the aid: food security, tourism, and environmental waste management.
She added that the NTB Provincial Government is giving flexibility to village governments to design the use of the budget according to each area’s needs. Each village head is also permitted to prepare a Budget Cost Plan (RAB) based on village consultation outcomes.
“All village heads can design their RAB proposals for those three aspects. Whether Rp 300 million for the environment only, that’s fine. Or Rp 300 million divided among the three themes, Rp 100 million each, that’s also fine. It’s based on village consultation,” she explained.
The distribution of aid under the Desa Berdaya programme by the NTB Provincial Government will also involve the Financial and Development Supervisory Agency (BPKP). The NTB Provincial Government will enter into a memorandum of understanding with BPKP to oversee the implementation of the Desa Berdaya programme and other programmes.
“We will have an MoU with BPKP for supervision. Not just for Desa Berdaya, but for other programmes as well,” Nelly added.