"There are 29 villages that have been lost, wiped out by landslides or swept away by floods, and this requires a resolution," he said during a coordination meeting on Sumatra post-disaster recovery in Jakarta on Wednesday.
Karnavian explained that the issues that need to be addressed go beyond just the physical relocation of residents, but also concern village governance and administration, which must be settled promptly to ensure public services continue.
He detailed that the majority of the lost villages are in Aceh, with 21 villages spread across Aceh Tamiang, Nagan Raya, Central Aceh, and Gayo Lues. Meanwhile, the other eight are located in North Sumatra, specifically in the South Tapanuli and Central Tapanuli districts.
Furthermore, he mentioned that there are currently options for these villages: either they will be rebuilt or completely removed from the government’s administrative system.
At Wednesday's meeting, Karnavian—concurrently serving as Chair of the Sumatra Post-Disaster Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Acceleration Task Force—also presented the progress of post-disaster recovery in Sumatra.
In West Sumatra, 13 out of 16 affected districts and cities have returned to normalcy. Tanah Datar is nearing a full recovery, while two others—Agam and Padang Pariaman—still require special attention.
In North Sumatra, 15 of the 18 affected districts and cities have returned to normal. South Tapanuli is approaching normalcy, while the other two, Central Tapanuli and North Tapanuli, continue to require special attention.
Meanwhile, in Aceh, 10 out of 18 affected districts and cities have recovered. Bener Meriah is nearing normalcy, while seven districts still require special attention.
According to Karnavian, the normalcy status is determined based on the recovery of government services, health services, educational services, roads, economy, electricity, clean water, and river normalization.
Three provinces of Sumatra: Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra, were previously hit by heavy rainfall-triggered floods and landslides in late November 2025.
According to the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) records, as of February 18, the disasters claimed 1,206 lives and damaged over 300,000 homes.
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Translator: Fianda Sjofjan, Raka Adji
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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