President Prabowo's Message at Sulawesi Regional Outstanding Local Government Appreciation Event
The 2026 Regional Outstanding Local Government Appreciation Event for Sulawesi took place in Kendari on Friday evening, 29 May 2026. Attendees included Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs (Menkopolkam) General (Ret.) Djamari Chaniago, Minister of Home Affairs (Mendagri) General (Ret.) Muhammad Tito Karnavian, Minister of Housing and Settlements (PKP) Maruarar Sirait, Statistics Indonesia (BPS) Chief Amalia Adininggar Widyasanti, regional leaders across Sulawesi, and members of the Regional Leadership Coordination Forum (Forkopimda).
In his speech, Menkopolkam General (Ret.) Djamari Chaniago conveyed a message from President Prabowo Subianto to the attending local leaders. “A greeting from President Prabowo to all present,” he said. “His message is to continue our struggle. Be confident that our path is correct. What remains is the sincerity to carry it out. Together, we can achieve this.”
Chaniago added that the appreciation for outstanding local governments marks the starting point for further improvement. “This is the result of Forkopimda collaboration on the ground,” he said. “I thank all Forkopimda in the Sulawesi region for maintaining public tranquillity.”
He also reminded that all efforts by local leaders ultimately aim to improve citizens’ welfare. “Our determination is strong, our spirit burning, tireless and unwavering in achieving public prosperity,” he stated.
Meanwhile, Mendagri Tito Karnavian explained that the awards were given to regions excelling in four categories: unemployment reduction, Entrepreneurial Government/Creative Financing, inflation control, and poverty and stunting mitigation. According to Tito, the awards are funded through the Ministry of Home Affairs budget. “Approximately Rp 1 trillion of the Ministry’s budget has been allocated as fiscal incentives for outstanding local governments,” Tito said, adding that previously such incentives were provided by the Ministry of Finance.
The 2026 Outstanding Local Government Appreciation is divided into six regions: Sumatra, Kalimantan, Maluku-Nusa Tenggara, Sulawesi, Java-Bali, and Papua. Tito explained this structure ensures fairness, especially for smaller regions that struggle to compete with provinces, regencies, and cities with much larger budgets.
“If judged nationally, the same regions would always win,” Tito said. “Areas with smaller budgets cannot compete with those having tens of trillions in regional budgets.”
By December 2026, the awards will be presented in three waves across the six regions, totalling 18 events. “This award is not just trophies and certificates but also fiscal incentives from the Ministry of Home Affairs to support outstanding local governments,” he said. “This is additional funding for regional budgets, to be used for community development.”
Tito detailed that all evaluations used quantitative data from Statistics Indonesia (BPS) and the Regional Government Information System (SIPD), making manipulation impossible. “Poverty, unemployment, stunting, and inflation data come from BPS. Creative financing is assessed by a region’s ability to increase regional original revenue (PAD) and innovative financing methods,” he said.
One of the top winners in the Poverty and Stunting Mitigation category was Sidenreng Rappang Regency (Sidrap). Regent Syaharuddin Alrif outlined his strategy to reduce poverty and stunting through community mutual assistance.
He said the local government provided Rp 3 million business capital to poor families without using the regional budget, instead relying on contributions from wealthier residents. “People with better economic status help poor families to have business capital,” Syaharuddin said. The programme reduced the poor population from 18,000 to 13,000.
For stunting management, Sidrap implemented the “Genting” (Stunting-Free Foster Parent Movement) initiative. Through this, entrepreneurs, officials, and TNI/Polri personnel became foster parents for stunting-affected children. The stunting cases dropped from around 8,000 to 1,200.
According to Syaharuddin, Sidrap’s economic growth now leads South Sulawesi at 7.71%, driven by agriculture, trade, and processing industries.
Meanwhile, North Sulawesi Governor Yulius Selvanus, who received an award in the Poverty and Stunting Mitigation category, said the priority is ensuring citizens live prosperously free from poverty and stunting. “We don’t need awards; what matters is the people’s prosperity and a future without poverty or stunting in North Sulawesi,” he said.
List of Winners for the 2026 Sulawesi Regional Outstanding Local Government Appreciation:
Unemployment Reduction Category
Province:
West Sulawesi
Cities:
Bau-Bau
Kendari
Pare-Pare
Regencies:
Kolaka
Konawe Islands
Kolaka North
Entrepreneurial Government/Creative Financing Category: