Returning from Philippines, Prabowo to Inspect Fishermen's Village in Gorontalo
President Prabowo Subianto conducted an inspection of the Merah Putih Fishermen’s Village (KMNP) in South Leato, Gorontalo City, on Saturday (9/5/2026). This took place after attending the ASEAN Summit in the Philippines.
The visit was scheduled following the President’s limited entourage’s agenda on Miangas Island, North Sulawesi.
From CNBC Indonesia’s observations, local government has implemented security measures and preparations for the welcome. In addition to viewing the village facilities, the President will engage in dialogue with the fishermen.
It is known that currently, 65 locations for KMNP Phase I 2025 have been 100% completed. This includes the construction of fishing areas, fishery facilities, environmental infrastructure, and cold chain equipment.
Of that number, payments for construction work have been made for 61 Phase I locations, while the other 4 locations have completed the handover certificate and are scheduled for payment in early May 2026.
KMNP Phase II for 2025 at 35 locations has currently achieved an average progress of 40%. The KMNP Task Force has requested commitments from contractors to complete the work no later than 31 May 2026 by increasing the number of workers on site and accelerating the procurement of cold chain equipment.
Previously, President Prabowo Subianto emphasised his commitment to strengthening the maritime sector through the integrated development of fishermen’s villages across Indonesia. In 2026, the government targets the construction of 1,000 fishermen’s villages, as part of the larger goal of 5,000 fishermen’s villages by 2029.
The following are the facilities at the Leato South Fishermen’s Village in Gorontalo City:
This is a KMNP Phase I 2025 project completed on 31 December 2025 on a 3,895 square metre plot of land. The facilities were built at a cost of Rp 15.8 billion.
The development of this area is designed as an integrated economic activity centre for the fishing community, including production facilities, fish handling, and coastal area support services.
This fishermen’s village covers 835 households, with 612 individuals actively working as fishermen, supported by 214 fishing vessels.
The area has significant potential for capture fisheries, with main commodities being mackerel, skipjack, and tuna, which serve as the primary income source for the community and flagship fishery products of Gorontalo City.
A block ice factory and refrigerators are visible and ready to operate. Yanwar Amri Yasman, Head of Kwandang Nusantara Fishery Port, explained that this ice factory produces up to 1 tonne of block ice per cycle. Two cycles are conducted per day, resulting in 2 tonnes of block ice produced daily.
Meanwhile, the cold storage has facilities for 1 tonne of catch in the freezer cabinet and 10 tonnes in the storage cabinet.
Yanwar also explained that with this fishermen’s village, catches no longer need to be sold immediately to the market. Previously, fishermen’s catches had to be sold out at the market due to the lack of storage facilities.
Moreover, with these facilities, fishermen can store their catches when prices are low.
“Especially if, for example, during peak fishing season, production is abundant beyond the market’s absorption capacity, prices usually drop. Well, with the cold storage facility at the KMNP site, when prices are low and production is abundant, the fish can be stored first in the cold storage, which can last more than a year, of course. That’s how it is. Frozen products can last more than a year,” he clarified.
Yanwar also noted that these facilities are managed by the local Merah Putih Village Cooperative. The price of block ice for fishermen is set at Rp 6,500 per block, and the storage fee is Rp 2,000 for two weeks.