JAKARTA – The Minister of Villages and Development of Disadvantaged Regions (Mendes PDT), Yandri Susanto, and the Deputy Minister of Villages, Ahmad Riza Patria, attended the 2026 CSR and PDB (Village Development Building) Awards themed "The Contribution of Businesses and Other Organizations in Supporting the Action Plan to Build Villages and Build Indonesia for the Achievement of Asta Cita Toward Golden Indonesia 2045," held in the Operational Room, Tuesday (April 21, 2026).

Minister Yandri stated that the Ministry is presenting awards to regional heads who demonstrate a strong commitment to village development by effectively utilizing Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds from the business sector.

"We thank the state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and the business world for distributing their CSR effectively and with high impact," said Minister Yandri.

According to the Minister, village residents are directly benefiting from these corporate CSR efforts through various mentoring and empowerment programs. These initiatives cover areas such as Thematic Villages, Economic Empowerment Villages, infrastructure development, clean water projects, and human resource development.

Minister Yandri continues to urge SOEs and private companies to increase their focus on rural areas, as many villages still possess significant untapped potential.

"Currently, there are still many villages with potential—such as Export Villages, Thematic Villages, and Climate Resilience Villages—that have the capacity to be developed through collaborative efforts," Minister Yandri explained.

This initiative follows the directive from President Prabowo Subianto, who has encouraged businesses, SOEs, and government officials to adopt "Foster Villages" (Desa Binaan) to accelerate development across Indonesia's rural areas.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Indonesia Social Sustainability Forum, Sudarmanto, expressed his gratitude for the successful launch of the 2026 CSR Awards. "This is an extraordinary momentum. We hope this initiative continues to run well," said Sudarmanto.

The event was also attended by the Minister of Transmigration, Muhammad Iftitah Sulaiman Suryanagara; Deputy Minister of Health, Dante Saksono Harbuwono; Deputy Minister of Social Affairs, Agus Jabo Priyono; Deputy Minister of Tourism, Ni Luh Enik Ermawati; Deputy Minister of Environment, Diaz Hendropriyono; the Governor of Central Java, Ahmad Luthfi; and the Deputy Governors of East Java (Emil Elestianto Dardak), North Maluku (Sarbin Sehe), South Sumatra (Cik Ujang), and Papua (Aryoko Alberto Ferdinand Rumaropen).

Photo: Sigit/Kemendes PDT 
Text: Firman/Kemendes PDT