Minister ensures disaster funds ready for NTT earthquake

hartono · Aug 17, 2026

Minister ensures disaster funds ready for NTT earthquake

WhatsApp-Image-2026-08-12-at-17.47.41.jpeg

Indonesia's Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa at the MoF Office in Jakarta on Wednesday (August 12, 2026). (ANTARA/HO-Kementerian Keuangan)

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia’s Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa said the funding for disaster response in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) would initially come from the budget allocated to the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB).

"We usually use funds from the BNPB that we have already set aside. There is still around Rp5 trillion (about US$280 million), if I am not mistaken. Some may have been used, but there should still be enough," Sadewa told reporters in Jakarta on Monday.

He said the disaster response would be carried out in stages, starting with emergency measures funded through BNPB. If funding needs an increase, the government would adjust the budget support to ensure the response could continue.

"For disasters, we use BNPB funds first. If that is not enough, then we move on to reconstruction. So, there should be no problem. There is a special reserve for disasters," Sadewa said.

The government also has standby funds that can be released based on the needs on the ground.

"The funds are on call and ready for every disaster response," he said.

Financing would be provided based on the needs of the disaster response and coordinated agencies in the government.

Reconstruction of public facilities, which cannot be financed through BNPB, would require coordination with the relevant ministries and government agencies, he explained.

"We will adjust it according to the needs; but for public facilities that cannot be funded through BNPB, the coordination then would be necessarily conducted with relevant ministries or agencies," Sadewa said.

A magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck Nagekeo District in East Nusa Tenggara on Saturday at 5:58 a.m. local time. As of Sunday evening, BNPB reported 54 people had died, 199 were injured, 9,963 had been displaced, and 1,528 households had been affected.