Army Chief Maruli Reveals 27 Million Indonesians Lack Access to Clean Water, TNI AD Accelerates Water Programme

JAKARTA - The Army Chief of Staff (KSAD), General TNI Maruli Simanjuntak, stated that 27 million Indonesians have yet to enjoy access to clean water. Therefore, Maruli revealed that the Indonesian Army (TNI AD) is endeavouring to assist the public through programmes on food security, provision of clean water, as well as irrigation for agriculture and plantations. This was conveyed by Maruli during a briefing to participants of the National Leadership Preparation Training (P3N) Batch XXVII and the National Leadership Preparation and Consolidation Training (P4N) Batch LXIX at the Indonesian National Resilience Institute, on Tuesday (8/4/2026). Maruli added that Indonesia possesses vast resource potential, but it must be balanced with innovation in various sectors to strengthen national defence while improving public welfare. He stressed that the development of TNI AD’s strength must be carried out in a planned, integrated, and sustainable manner to realise a modern, professional, and adaptive defence posture in response to strategic environmental developments. Furthermore, he said, all presidential policies aimed at increasing state revenue and public welfare must be fully supported. In this regard, Maruli noted that TNI AD is acting swiftly in disaster management so that affected residents do not remain in difficulty for too long. Meanwhile, in the field of defence equipment, TNI AD continues to develop defence systems and technological innovations. “We must already prepare; our children are capable of producing combat equipment that is also possessed by other countries,” he added.