Indonesia Prepares for Strong 2026 El Niño Amid Drought and Fire Risks

The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) warned that the 2026 El Niño is likely to be strong, with a 98% probability, posing severe threats of drought, forest‑fire outbreaks, reduced water availability, and public‑health impacts across large parts of Indonesia, especially Java, Bali, Nusa Tenggara, southern Sumatra, southern Kalimantan, Sulawesi, and southern Papua.

Interior Minister Tito Karnavian instructed all regional heads to bolster preparedness, coordinating with the National Agency for Disaster Management, agricultural and water‑resource agencies, and local governments to implement mitigation measures such as irrigation reinforcement, pompanisation, and weather‑modification operations. He emphasized the need for integrated cross‑sector coordination to protect agriculture, energy production, and food security.

The government also urged citizens to adopt water‑saving habits—repairing leaks, harvesting rainwater, reusing grey water, planting trees, and keeping rivers clean—to support the national water‑self‑sufficiency agenda.

In Lombok Timur, the charitable group Rumah Wakaf delivered 25,000 liters of clean water to about 2,000 residents of Seriwe village, responding to the heightened risk of water scarcity linked to the projected “Godzilla El Niño.”