Padang Government Nurtures Young Digital Talent Through PIAGEX 2026

The enthusiasm of the younger generation filled the Youth Center Building in Padang for the closing and winner announcement of the Padang International Animation and Game Expo (PIAGEX) 2026 on Monday, 27 July 2026. The first-time event served as a collaborative space for students, teachers, creative communities, and industry players to develop potential in animation, coding, and game development.

“We from the Education and Culture Office highly appreciate the PIAGEX activities held in 2026. This activity was attended by 96 participants from all schools in Padang City, and there were also teacher representatives,” said Ikhwansyah, Secretary of the Padang City Education and Culture Office. The event was also attended by the Head of Information Technology Infrastructure at the Padang City Communication and Information Office and Vice Chairman of the PIAGEX Steering Board, Romy Elpa Segas.

PIAGEX 2026 featured seven competition categories covering animation, game development, block coding, and intellectual property (IP) development. The seven competition categories were considered to represent the current conditions of students while supporting the improvement of teacher competencies in coding and algorithms.

The organisation of PIAGEX 2026 was deemed aligned with the Padang Juara and Padang Smart City programmes. “This is certainly in line with the Padang Juara, Padang Smart City programme. Of the 7 competition categories, all are very representative of our children’s current conditions, including the development of teacher competencies, especially in coding and algorithms.”

Through this activity, the Education and Culture Office hopes that children’s talents in coding can be channelled, fostering creativity and opening opportunities for them to excel in the digital field. “Of course, we hope that through this activity, our children who have talents in coding can channel their talents, as well as grow and develop their creativity,” said Ikhwansyah.

One of the attractions of PIAGEX 2026 was the presence of various game works highlighting the local richness of Padang City. Several participants presented games with themes of Gastronomy City and Loji Belanda, as a form of support for the 357th Padang City Anniversary, which will be commemorated on 7 August.

“There are games made by children related to Gastronomy City and Loji Belanda. This is in accordance with the 357th Padang City Anniversary on 7 August. This is certainly an opportunity for our children to excel and be creative in the digital field,” said Ikhwansyah.

At the end of the event, the committee announced the winners from various categories. For the Junior High School Game Development category, 1st Place was won by SlushGame Development with Minang Destiny (score 349), followed by MCQ 30 Team with Nyx The Alien Jumper (344) as 2nd Place, and Eco-Ranger with AdiwiSchool (342) in third place.

In the Edugame Development (Teacher) category, Andre Agasi came out as 1st Place with Hardware Heroes (334), followed by Hafizul Hakim with School Defense (323) and Marina Oktavia with Password Defender (311). The 2D/3D Short Animation category was won by Percik Animation with Loji Belanda scoring 363. Second place went to Tiara Amelia Putri with Dunia Milik Nile (345), while Raudhatul Hasanah won 3rd Place with We’ll Meet Again (344).

In the Live Game Coding Block category, Zaki Al Mushaddiq from SMPN 5 Padang won 1st Place. Second place was won by Shidqia Dianata from SMPN 30 Padang, while Marcel Rivano Kurniawan from SMP Maria Padang placed third.

For the BFOD 2026–Gastronominang category, Laureen Nadia Hendrawan from Jakarta won with Merangkum Semangkuk Rasa, while Wan Muhammad Abduh from Malaysia received the Favourite Award with Rasa Leluhur di Dapur Gadang.

Meanwhile, the Padang Indie Game Jam category was won by Lalizard from Batigo Studio. In the IP Development – Padang Gastronomy City category, Rahmat Raffydo won 1st Place with RANGKU, scoring 372. The Stand with the Most Votes award was won by SMPN 2 Padang and SMP Maria Padang.

Through the inaugural PIAGEX, the Padang City Government hopes the digital creative industry ecosystem will continue to grow while producing young talent with competencies in animation, coding, and game development based on local wisdom.