Ministry of Religious Affairs allocates IDR 85 billion to support post-disaster recovery in Aceh
The Ministry of Religious Affairs has allocated more than IDR 85 billion to support the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the education sector and religious services in Aceh following flash floods, through various programmes running across the 2025 and 2026 fiscal years.
‘The disaster has damaged educational facilities, houses of worship, and public religious services. Therefore, recovery must be carried out comprehensively so that the community can resume learning and worship properly,’ said Faisal Ali Hasyim, Expert Staff to the Minister of Religious Affairs for Human Rights and Law, in a statement in Jakarta on Wednesday.
Faisal stated the assistance represents the government’s commitment to ensuring that disaster-affected communities can once again access proper education and religious services.
In the 2025 fiscal year, the Ministry of Religious Affairs, through the Directorate General of Islamic Education, allocated IDR 46.38 billion in assistance for the recovery of the disaster-affected education sector. This aid reached 131 private madrasas, 169 state madrasas, 18 Islamic boarding schools, thousands of teachers and education personnel, religious higher education institutions, and affected students.
The support provided is not limited to funding, but also includes recovery support facilities such as cleaning equipment, high-pressure water sprayers, generator sets, emergency tents, furniture, and learning devices damaged by the disaster.
This commitment continues into the 2026 fiscal year with an allocation of IDR 14.24 billion. In addition to assistance for 24 private madrasas, the budget will also be used to rebuild MIN 5 Pidie Jaya, a madrasa that was swept away by flood currents.
Beyond the education sector, the Ministry of Religious Affairs also allocated IDR 24.46 billion through the Directorate General of Islamic Community Guidance to restore community religious services. This budget is being used for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of 64 District Religious Affairs Offices (KUA), assistance for 65 mosques and 20 prayer rooms, the distribution of 6,000 copies of the Qur’an, and other support for restoring disaster-affected religious facilities.
Faisal revealed that the Minister of Religious Affairs’ attention to Aceh has been evident since the emergency response period. In fact, a portion of the remaining budget from the Ministry’s work units at the end of the 2025 Fiscal Year was directed to assist disaster-affected educational and religious institutions.
According to him, the rehabilitation and reconstruction process does not stop with the assistance currently distributed. The government continues to synchronise data and planning with various parties so that the handling of affected madrasas, Islamic boarding schools, mosques, prayer rooms, and KUAs can proceed in stages over the next few years.
Secretary of the Directorate General of Islamic Education, Arskal Salim, expressed appreciation for the participation of the Acehnese community, who donated land for the reconstruction of several madrasas and KUAs swept away by the floods. ‘This demonstrates the extraordinary spirit of mutual cooperation among the Acehnese people. This support greatly aids the acceleration of rebuilding educational and religious service facilities,’ he said.
Efforts to handle a KUA swept away by floods in Gayo Lues Regency are also continuously being pursued through various government funding schemes, including Sovereign Sharia Securities (SBSN).
The allocation of over IDR 85 billion prepared by the Ministry of Religious Affairs is part of a larger recovery effort. In the post-disaster rehabilitation and reconstruction master plan presented by the Minister of Home Affairs, the total handling needs for the Ministry of Religious Affairs sectors in Aceh were recorded at IDR 1.836 trillion, covering the reconstruction of madrasas, Islamic boarding schools, houses of worship, and other religious service facilities.