Deputy Interior Minister Wiyagus Urges Regional Governments to Strengthen Collaboration in Facing Global Challenges
Deputy Interior Minister (Wamendagri) Akhmad Wiyagus has stressed that regional governments (Pemda) can no longer operate in isolation when it comes to governance and development. According to him, synergy and cross-regional collaboration have become a national strategic imperative to confront various global challenges, from energy crises and climate change to worldwide geopolitical uncertainties.
“Inter-regional cooperation is no longer merely an administrative option but a national strategic necessity,” he stated during the Gala Dinner of the Mitra Praja Utama (MPU) Fellowship Night event in Semarang, Central Java, quoted on Tuesday, 12 May 2026.
Wiyagus also spotlighted the strategic role of the ten MPU member provinces, which are assessed to have strong fiscal capacity and significant contributions to the national economy. He noted that the Java region currently accounts for more than 57 per cent of national economic growth, so the potential of each region needs to complement one another through their respective comparative advantages.
To strengthen national resilience, he encouraged enhancing connectivity between regions in sectors such as logistics, trade, energy, and government digitalisation. Regions with food surpluses are expected to assist those in need, while regions with high Regional Original Revenue (PAD) are urged to drive regional development.
“Regions with food surpluses must be able to support those that need it. Then, regions with strong fiscal capacity need to become drivers of regional development,” he explained.
Furthermore, Wiyagus hopes that the MPU forum can produce strategic and implementable steps to strengthen synergy between the central government and regions in maintaining national economic stability. “I also encourage the MPU to serve as a foundation for adaptive, innovative regional inter-regional cooperation that can generate concrete solutions to various cross-regional issues, including inflation control, food security, energy strengthening, disaster management, and security and order stability,” he concluded.
The event was also attended by Central Java Governor Ahmad Luthfi, Deputy Governor of the Special Region of Yogyakarta (DIY) KGPAA Paku Alam X, Deputy Governor of West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) Indah Dhamayanti Putri, Executive Director of Mitra Praja Utama Suhajar Diantoro, as well as several ministry/institutional officials and representatives of other MPU member regional governments.