JAKARTA – EXECUTIVE ADMINISTRATION BUREAU. Deputy Governor of Central Kalimantan H. Edy Pratowo attended the Coordination Meeting on Anticipation to the Handling of Haze Disasters Due to Forest and Land Fires in 2022, located in Dr. Sutopo Graha Hall (BNPB), East Jakarta on Wednesday (6/4/2022).

This coordination meeting was chaired directly by the Head of the National Board for Disaster Management Lt. Gen. Suharyanto who was accompanied by the Director General of Regional Administration of the Ministry of Home Affairs Safrizal Z.A. and the Expert Staff of the Minister of Environment and Forestry Raffles B. Panjaitan.

This coordination meeting was attended by a number of related ministries/institutions and regional governments from 6 Provinces, namely South Sumatra, Jambi, Riau, West Kalimantan, South Kalimantan, and Central Kalimantan. The Governor of Riau H. Syamsuar also attended this coordination meeting directly.

“Today, we are holding a joint coordination meeting with BNPB (and) related ministries, which are the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, the Ministry of Transportation, National Indonesian Armed Forces and National Indonesian Police, and all Governors from 6 provinces. It is a priority to prevent forest and land fires in 2022,” said Deputy Governor Edy Pratowo on the sidelines of the activity.

Deputy Governor Edy Pratowo then explained the purpose of this coordination meeting. “Basically, the coordination meeting is for preparation. We also heard reports from the Indonesian Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysical Agency (BMKG) regarding the weather forecast that was reported for 2022, the weather is not as extreme as in previous years,” he explained.

As reported by BMKG, the weather in 2022 is not expected to be as extreme as in previous years. However, the Deputy Governor of Central Kalimantan, Edy Pratowo, still emphasized the importance of vigilance and preparedness to deal with the potential for forest and land fires.

“But we also hope that regional preparedness, especially in Central Kalimantan Province, to carry out land forest fire prevention activities will continue, including budget support, personnel, and other equipment,” hoped the Deputy Governor Edy Pratowo.

The Deputy Governor also emphasized the commitment of the Central Kalimantan Provincial Government to synergize with the regency / municipality governments in an effort to prevent forest and land fires in Central Kalimantan. “The point is that Central Kalimantan is ready to collaborate together with the regency/municipality governments in order to prevent forest and land fires in 2022,” concluded Deputy Governor Edy Pratowo.

Being present to accompany the Deputy Governor of Central Kalimantan Edy Pratowo in this coordination meeting was the Head of Disaster and Fire Management Agency (BPBPK) Falery Tuwan. (set/ist/transl.feb)