Prabowo summons officials to discuss ongoing wildfire response
President Prabowo Subianto summoned senior government officials to the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Monday afternoon for an urgent briefing on forest and land fires that have intensified across multiple Indonesian provinces.
Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Dudung Abdurachman arrived at the palace at approximately 2 p.m. local time to present the president with outcomes from an earlier interministerial meeting on wildfire mitigation strategies. Abdurachman, who was appointed to his current position on October 1, 2026, previously served as Presidential Chief of Staff and Chief of Staff of the Indonesian Army.
"I will report the results of my earlier meeting with ministries to Mr. President. Today, I also expect to receive further directives regarding forest and land fires from the president," Abdurachman told reporters outside the palace.
The meeting comes as Indonesia faces an unprecedented wildfire crisis. As of October 18, fire hotspots across the country more than quadrupled to 1,104, with Central Kalimantan recording the sharpest increase to 495 from 92 the previous day, while West Kalimantan rose to 174 from 22. Satellite imagery analysis reveals that fires burned through over 1.9 million hectares between January and the end of September 2026, representing a 38 percent increase compared to the same period in 2019.
Abdurachman declined to provide specific details on the current number of hotspots or comment on whether the government would declare the wildfires a national disaster.
"It's not yet the time. I will tell you more after attending the meeting," he said.
Head of the National Peatland and Mangrove Management Agency (BPGMN) Satyawan Pudyatmoko also attended the palace meeting. Pudyatmoko was inaugurated on October 15, 2026, to lead the newly established agency that reports directly to the president. BPGMN was created on September 24, 2026, to strengthen peatland management and prevent forest fires. Pudyatmoko previously served as Deputy for Planning and Evaluation at the Peatland and Mangrove Restoration Agency.
"Yes, it will be a meeting on wildfires," Pudyatmoko confirmed, adding he would provide more information following the discussion.
Other senior officials present at the palace included Home Affairs Minister Tito Karnavian and Presidential Chief of Staff Listyo Sigit Prabowo.
Priority provinces and emergency measures
Six provinces have been identified as priority areas for fire prevention and response efforts: Riau, Jambi, South Sumatra, West Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, and South Kalimantan. Several of these provinces, including Central Kalimantan, South Kalimantan, West Kalimantan, and Jambi, have declared emergency alert status for forest fires, with alerts extending through October 31 or November 30, 2026.
Data from January through June 2026 showed 107,465 hectares of land were affected by fires, representing a 110 percent increase compared with the same period in 2023 when El Niño last affected Indonesia.
The Monday afternoon palace meeting followed an earlier session chaired by Abdurachman at his office, attended by Foreign Minister Arrmanatha Nasir, Transmigration Minister Muhammad Iftitah Sulaiman Suryanagara, Deputy Environment Minister Diaz Hendropriyono, National Research and Innovation Agency Head Arif Satria, and Government Communications Agency Head Syahganda Nainggolan, among others. That meeting addressed wildfire mitigation efforts and current political developments.
International assistance
The scale of the crisis has prompted regional cooperation, with Malaysia offering three helicopters and 52 personnel to assist Indonesia's firefighting operations, according to Abdurachman on October 19, 2026.
The closed-door discussions at the Presidential Palace underscore the government's efforts to coordinate a comprehensive response to the worsening wildfire situation affecting communities and ecosystems across the Indonesian archipelago.
