Government Prepares Stimulus to Anticipate El Nino Impact

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa said the government is preparing a stimulus package in the second half of 2026 to anticipate the impact of El Nino, which has been active since June and has the potential to affect various sectors.

Purbaya said President Prabowo Subianto has instructed that the stimulus be prepared immediately as a measure to anticipate the potential impact of El Nino on the economy.

“The President has ordered the preparation of that programme,” Purbaya said during a media briefing in Jakarta on Wednesday.

However, he said the government has not yet determined the budget value or programme details because the discussion process is still ongoing.

Purbaya explained that the Ministry of Finance is still waiting for proposals from technical ministries before the stimulus is decided.

“Once it is finalised, we will implement it. But it is still being discussed now,” he said.

The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) has stated that El Nino has reached a strong category and still has the potential to intensify to very strong, posing a risk of triggering a drier and longer dry season in several regions of Indonesia.

BMKG Head Teuku Faisal Fathani said on Tuesday (4/8) that BMKG monitoring results show El Nino has an ENSO index of +1.59, placing it in the strong category.

According to BMKG, rainfall from August to September 2026 is expected to be in the low to very low category before the rainy season begins in mid-October 2026.

The impact of the phenomenon is mainly felt in areas south of the equator, such as East Nusa Tenggara, West Nusa Tenggara, Bali, Java, southern Sumatra, and southern Papua.

BMKG also warned that El Nino has the potential to affect various sectors, including agriculture, clean water supply, reservoir and irrigation management, forest and land fires, energy, health, fisheries, and community economic activity.