South Sulawesi Named Best Province for Development Financing in Sulawesi, Receives Rp 3 Billion Incentive
The Ministry of Home Affairs (Kemendagri) has designated South Sulawesi Province as the first-place winner in the Creative Financing category at the provincial level during the 2026 Regional Sulawesi Outstanding Local Government Awards. The award was presented directly to the Governor of South Sulawesi, Andi Sudirman Sulaiman, at the Hotel Claro in Kendari, Southeast Sulawesi, on Friday (29/5/2026).
Alongside the trophy, the South Sulawesi Provincial Government received government assistance in the form of a fiscal incentive valued at Rp 3 billion. The 2026 Outstanding Local Government Awards is a programme organised by the Ministry of Home Affairs to honour local governments that have demonstrated exceptional performance across various development sectors.
In the Sulawesi region, awards were presented across four categories: creative financing, reduction of unemployment rates, inflation control, and poverty alleviation and stunting reduction. The assessment for these categories included the ability of regions to manage regional-owned enterprises (BUMD) to increase regional original income (PAD), digitalisation aspects, financial governance, and consistency in audit opinions regarding regional financial management. Due to these achievements, South Sulawesi was deemed the best province in the Sulawesi region for introducing breakthroughs in regional development financing.
In his address, the Minister of Home Affairs, Muhammad Tito Karnavian, stated that the 2026 Outstanding Local Government Awards is not merely ceremonial, as it is accompanied by fiscal incentives for regions demonstrating the best performance. Tito expressed hope that the provision of these incentives would encourage local governments to continuously improve performance, enhance public services, and optimise their respective regional potentials.
“This event is one of our efforts to provide awards to motivate our fellow regional heads,” said Tito. He further explained that the 2026 Outstanding Local Government Awards is divided by region to ensure that competition between areas remains proportional. According to Tito, if the competition were conducted on a national scale, regions with limited fiscal capacity would find it difficult to compete with large provinces or areas possessing significantly larger budgets.