Prabowo: Road Development Key to Boosting Regional Economies
President Prabowo Subianto has emphasised that regional road development is key to reducing national logistics costs while strengthening economic and food resilience. He made the statement during the inauguration of the implementation of Presidential Instruction (Inpres) Number 11 of 2025 concerning the Acceleration of Regional Road Connectivity Improvement to Support Food and Energy Self-Sufficiency, covering 1,151 kilometres across 37 provinces, in East Java on Tuesday (23/6).
According to Prabowo, the completion of the regional road construction is a significant achievement because road infrastructure plays a strategic role in driving economic activity down to remote areas. “Let us proudly and happily welcome the completion of regional road construction totalling 1,151 kilometres throughout Indonesia, in 37 provinces. The presence of these regional roads holds very important meaning,” Prabowo said, as witnessed on the Presidential Secretariat’s YouTube channel.
He explained that regional roads are the lifeblood of the people’s economy. With adequate road access, farmers’ harvests, plantation products, fishery yields, and various community commodities can be more easily distributed from villages to markets, distribution centres, and industrial areas. Conversely, community needs can also reach villages more smoothly.
Prabowo assessed that Indonesia’s vast and diverse geographical challenges demand good inter-regional connectivity. With an adequate road network, transportation and distribution costs can be reduced, thereby increasing national economic competitiveness. “Transport costs will be cheaper if roads are sufficient, if there is connectivity between all production centres and residential areas,” he said.
The head of state stated that the government does not want any region to be left behind due to limited infrastructure access. Therefore, regional road construction is part of the government’s effort to reduce logistics costs, which have been one of the challenges to economic growth. He also linked road construction to the broader national resilience agenda. According to him, food and energy self-sufficiency depend not only on production but also on smooth distribution.
“Good roads are part of our resilience strategy. Food self-sufficiency is not just about seeds, fertilisers, and irrigation; energy self-sufficiency is not just about energy; it is also the result of a smooth and well-functioning distribution network,” Prabowo stated. He therefore urged regional governments to maintain and utilise the infrastructure that has been built so that its benefits can be felt by the community in the long term.
Prabowo also confirmed that regional infrastructure development will continue. The government, he said, is committed to increasing the development budget allocation to reach more areas and villages across Indonesia. “In the coming years, we will increase funding for development in all regions, right down to the villages,” he said.
Minister of Public Works Dody Hanggodo noted that the completion of the 1,151 km of regional roads across 37 provinces cost IDR 5.41 trillion. He also reported that the construction is now 100 percent complete and can be directly utilised by the public.