BNPB Reports 23,000 Residents Affected by Drought, West Java Hardest Hit

The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) has revealed that drought is impacting 13 provinces in Indonesia. BNPB is preparing a number of measures to address the impact of the drought on community activities. Based on BNPB data up to mid-July, the highest number of drought hotspots is in Central Java with 15 points. This is followed by West Java with 13 points, East Java with 6 points, and West Nusa Tenggara with 4 points. “In total there are 51 hotspots with 23,937 residents affected,” said Head of the BNPB Data, Information and Communication Centre Abdul Muhari on Thursday (16/7/2026). Abdul explained that Indonesia is currently experiencing a dry season as a result of the El Nino phase. This condition has become a focus for BNPB, which is preparing emergency alert phases through to emergency response. “So what we are prioritising to strengthen BNPB’s steps is, first, carrying out weather modification operations if the rain clouds are sufficient,” said Abdul. He mentioned that the weather modification operation is aimed at wetting upstream areas to refill catchment areas. This will eventually flow into residents’ wells or replenish reservoirs, embankments, and lakes whose water volumes may have decreased due to the dry season. “But once again, this is highly dependent on the availability of rain clouds. Like the case of the Jatiwaringin landfill fire last Sunday, BNPB prepared a weather modification fleet but it could not be carried out due to the lack of adequate rain clouds,” said Abdul. Furthermore, from a preparedness perspective, BNPB has built boreholes in areas that historically experience water scarcity or suffer from recurring drought disasters. “We generally build these in NTT, NTB, East Java, Central Java, Sumatra, of course, and other areas that historically and report to BNPB that they experience recurring drought,” said Abdul.