North Sumatra Governor Announces Incentives for Village Heads Completing Disaster Training

Medan (ANTARA) - North Sumatra Governor Bobby Nasution stated that village heads in the province who pass disaster preparedness training will receive additional incentives from the provincial government. “We will give incentives to village heads who are declared to have passed and are certified,” Bobby said after opening the Surface Water Search and Rescue Potential Training at the North Sumatra Governor’s Office on Tuesday. The governor explained that this additional incentive applies to each village head participating in the surface water search and rescue potential training conducted by the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas). “The experience of various hydrometeorological disasters hitting North Sumatra, including floods and landslides at the end of November 2025, shows the importance of village officials’ capacity in facing emergency conditions,” he said. Bobby acknowledged that the hydrometeorological disasters at the end of November 2025 affected 1,803,715 people, displaced 11,209, caused 375 fatalities, injured five people, and left 41 people missing. “If we cannot prevent disasters from occurring, we must at least be able to save lives,” he stated. The governor also shared his experience when reviewing the impact of the late November 2025 hydrometeorological disasters in one of the hardest-hit areas in South Tapanuli Regency, North Sumatra. Although more than half of the area in South Tapanuli was severely damaged by floods and landslides, there were no fatalities. “More than half of their area was hit by floods and landslides, but there were no fatalities, only injuries. In other nearby areas, many residents died. When I asked, the village head said he had attended Basarnas training and applied it when the disaster occurred,” Bobby explained. Head of Basarnas, Air Marshal Mohammad Syafii, asserted that disaster emergency management cannot be handled by Basarnas alone. Therefore, his agency continues to build collaboration with various ministries, institutions, local governments, and the public. “We realise we cannot work alone. Our personnel number only 6,500, while the requirement is 29,000 across Indonesia. Therefore, we continue to synergise, as we are doing now with village officials. They are our frontline in emergency conditions,” Syafii said.