North Sumatra Government Strengthens Fishermen's Education to Prevent Border Crossings
The North Sumatra Provincial Government is intensifying educational efforts to prevent fishermen from regencies and cities in the region from crossing Indonesian maritime boundaries. “We are preparing three strategic steps,” said North Sumatra Regional Secretary Sulaiman Harahap after a meeting with officials from the Indonesian Consulate General in Penang, Malaysia, at the Governor’s Office on Tuesday.
The three strategic steps include increasing education for fishermen and strengthening the capacity of fleets and fishing gear. The final step is to tighten legal coordination with the Indonesian Consulate General (KJRI) in Penang, Malaysia.
He stated that these three steps require strong synergy between the central government, regional governments, law enforcement officials, and Indonesian representatives abroad. “I hope the district and city governments, along with the province, strengthen education for fishermen regarding territorial boundaries and the penalties for violations. They also need to be educated on GPS technology and coordinates so they can be truly accurate about the boundaries,” Sulaiman explained.
In addition to education, the administration considers increasing the capacity of vessels and fishing gear to be an important part of ensuring fishermen obtain better catches without needing to approach the Indonesia-Malaysia maritime border. On the other hand, legal coordination with the KJRI in Penang is also being continuously strengthened to provide protection for North Sumatran fishermen if they face issues in border areas.
Sulaiman requested that regency and city governments along the eastern coast of North Sumatra promote the construction of fish aggregating devices (rumpon) to increase fishermen’s productivity in Indonesian waters. “We need to promote this, making rumpon, but it must be measured. We don’t want the rumpon to just become rubbish in the ocean. With this, our fishermen do not need to go far to the maritime boundary to catch fish,” Sulaiman said.
Indonesian Consul General in Penang, Malaysia, Wanton Saragih Sidauruk, revealed that the trend of North Sumatran fishermen being arrested by Malaysian authorities has shown a very significant decline in recent years. “In 2023, there were 123 recorded cases, which then fell to 24 cases in 2024, 19 cases in 2025, and as of mid-2026, only five cases have been recorded,” he said.
According to Wanton, this achievement is the result of collaboration between various parties in providing education and outreach to fishermen regarding maritime boundaries and the legal consequences of violating them. “After we intensively carried out education and outreach to fishermen together, the results have been significant. We appreciate the North Sumatra Provincial Government, the regency and city governments on the east coast. We hope this can continue,” Wanton Saragih said.