Regent Speaks Out as Drought Grips Gunungkidul

Drought has hit a number of areas in Gunungkidul. The regency administration is accelerating the distribution of clean water to drought-affected regions. Gunungkidul Regent Endah Subekti Kuntariningsih stated that this measure is being carried out through budgets at the kapanewon level, the Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD), and the Unexpected Expenditure (BTT) fund to ensure the drought response is not delayed. She said all kapanewon have coordinated with the Regional Leadership Coordination Forum (Forkopimda) to begin disbursing water distribution budgets.

“So each kapanewon has already received coordination with Forkopimda to start disbursing the water distribution budget. Today, several panewu have reported, and even the Police Chief has provided a report that the Police Sector Chiefs, Military Sub-district Commanders, and Panewu have begun identifying vulnerable points for clean water distribution,” Endah told journalists at the Kepatihan Complex in Yogyakarta on Thursday (30/7/2026).

Endah explained that the drought management budget does not only come from the BPBD but is also allocated at the kapanewon level and supported by the BTT. The previously declared disaster status will also be extended so that the budget can continue to be used for field operations. “So we attach the budget for clean water distribution to the sub-district or kapanewon, the Disaster Management Agency, and we also have the BTT. This is so we can execute the existing budget. The government must not be outpaced by other parties in handling this drought,” she clarified.

Endah continued that the regency government is also partnering with the National Alms Agency (Baznas) to provide 5,000-litre water storage tanks at several vulnerable points. The tanks are expected to make it easier for residents who do not have water storage facilities, so they do not need to seek out water sources located far away. “We have even partnered with other legitimate parties like Baznas to help, for the first year, by providing water storage. So at certain points, there are 5,000-litre water storage tanks, and later the water will be distributed to these tanks. This is so that residents who do not have storage can access water without having to search for sources in very difficult areas,” she said.

According to her, the impact of this year’s dry season is more severe than last year’s because the dry season arrived earlier and is lasting longer. Besides difficulties with clean water, several PDAM water sources and agricultural lands have also begun to be affected. Despite this, Endah assured that the region’s fiscal capacity to handle the drought remains sufficient. The BTT funds and the BPBD budget are still available and will continue to be used to support water distribution in affected areas.

“God willing, it can still be managed. The BTT is still intact, and the funds at the Disaster Management Agency are also still available. We will distribute the budget in each kapanewon,” she said. She noted that the BPBD budget for drought management amounts to nearly IDR 500 million. Meanwhile, each kapanewon has also prepared a budget for distributing more than 100 water tanks according to the needs of their respective areas. “At the Disaster Management Agency, it is more than, almost half a billion rupiah. But at the kapanewon level, the average budget is for more than 100 tanks. Certain kapanewon that have historically been prone to drought, like Semin, are not using it yet,” she revealed. “But for Tepus, Rongkop, then Panggang, Paliyan have reported, and in Ponjong the Panewu has already reported distributing 50 tanks. Then in Panggang, Saptosari has also distributed more than 50 tanks,” she concluded.