Post-Disaster Master Plan Issued, Sumatra Recovery Enters Permanent Phase

The government has issued Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Decree Number 25 of 2026 concerning the Master Plan for Accelerated Post-Disaster Rehabilitation and Reconstruction in Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra provinces. The issuance of this document marks the commencement of the permanent rehabilitation and reconstruction phase as part of comprehensive recovery efforts following the hydrometeorological disasters that struck Sumatra at the end of 2025. The Sumatra Post-Disaster Accelerated Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Master Plan serves as a joint guideline for ministries, agencies, regional governments, and various stakeholders in implementing recovery programmes until 2028. This document was prepared to ensure that the entire rehabilitation and reconstruction process proceeds in a directed, integrated, coordinated, and sustainable manner. The issuance of the master plan is a significant milestone in the recovery journey of the affected regions. After various emergency response and functional recovery measures were successfully undertaken to restore basic community activities, the government is now entering the permanent rebuilding phase. The recovery focus is not solely directed at physical construction but also at restoring the social, economic, and environmental life of affected communities. The Sumatra master plan has been formulated as a national policy document that serves as the primary reference for the planning, financing, implementation, and oversight of rehabilitation and reconstruction in Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra. The document also acts as a synchronisation instrument between central government programmes and regional needs to ensure the recovery process is more effective and targeted. In its implementation, the government is prioritising the principle of Build Back Better, Safer, and Sustainable. Through this approach, rehabilitation and reconstruction aim not merely to restore pre-disaster conditions but to rebuild affected areas to standards that are safer, more resilient, and better prepared for future disaster risks. Various priority programmes have been established in the master plan, ranging from the construction of permanent housing and provision of safe residential areas, restoration of basic infrastructure and public services, rehabilitation of education and health facilities, to the acceleration of community economic recovery through support for MSMEs, the agricultural sector, fisheries, and traditional markets. Furthermore, the government is emphasising strengthened governance and disaster mitigation as a crucial part of the recovery process. This is being carried out through the development of a single, integrated rehabilitation and reconstruction database, strengthened cross-sector coordination, and installation of early warning systems in disaster-prone areas to mitigate the risk of similar occurrences in the future. The master plan will serve as the reference for implementing rehabilitation and reconstruction in 53 affected districts across the three provinces. All programmes will be monitored and evaluated periodically to ensure recovery targets, budget utilisation, and activity implementation proceed as planned. ‘The realisation of post-disaster rehabilitation and reconstruction in Sumatra that is resilient, prosperous, and sustainable through integrated, inclusive rebuilding based on disaster risk,’ read the vision statement in the master plan, as signed by Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Pratikno. Through this master plan, the government hopes the post-disaster recovery process will not only restore conditions in the affected areas but also deliver a foundation for development that is stronger, safer, and more sustainable for the people of Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra in the future.