Jakarta, May 12, 2024 – Indonesia will present Citarum Harum, a river basin restoration model to combat pollution and degradation of the Citarum River Watershed (Daerah Aliran Sungai/ DAS) in West Java, as one of its best practices at the upcoming 10th World Water Forum to be held in Nusa Dua, Bali, from May 18-25, 2024.
The 297-kilometer-long Citarum is the longest river and one of the most important rivers in West Java. Despite its importance as a water resource to meet the daily needs of the surrounding communities, the Citarum River has been heavily polluted by domestic and industrial wastewater, which has increased due to population and industrial growth. President Joko Widodo initiated the Citarum Harum Program in 2018 with the aim of restoring the function and beauty of the Citarum River.
The Chairman of the National Organizing Committee (NOC) of the 10th World Water Forum and Coordinating Minister for Maritime and Investment Affairs, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, explained that this program is an integrated multi-stakeholder collaborative project involving ministries/institutions, local governments, historians, businesses, society and the media.
“The Citarum Harum program has achieved satisfactory results through solid cooperation and collaboration. These include a significant reduction in water pollution from previously heavily polluted to slightly polluted waters, increased revegetation efforts in upstream rivers, optimization of waste management throughout the Citarum watershed, strict prosecution of polluters, and improved education and empowerment of communities to maintain river cleanliness," Luhut said in the foreword of the book titled “Citarum Harum: Caring for Rivers Saves Lives” (“Citarum Harum: Merawat Sungai Menyelamatkan Kehidupan”), cited on Sunday (5/12/2024).
The Citarum River Revitalization Program has a broader significance, not only for the restoration of the river, but also for the protection of the sea, since clean and healthy rivers also release clean water into the sea. In essence, protecting the Citarum River means protecting the sea, and protecting the sea means protecting Indonesia.
Meanwhile, the Vice Chairman of the NOC of the 10th World Water Forum and Minister for Public Works and Public Housing (MPWH), Basuki Hadimuljono, explained that for waste management in the Citarum watershed, the Improvement of Solid Waste Management Support Regional and Metropolitan Cities Project (ISWMP) has been implemented by the Directorate General Cipta Karya of the MPWH since 2020 and is expected to last until November 2025.
The success of the Citarum Harum Program required synergies between central government, regional governments, business and the community, which were agreed in an action plan for which everyone is responsible.
Watershed management in the water resource sector (Sumber Daya Air/ SDA) includes the normalization of rivers, construction of tunnels, flood channels, retention dams, construction of wastewater treatment plants and surface wastes and must be done in an integrated manner with other Citarum Harum programs, such as critical land management, waste management and sewage disposal, disposal of industrial, domestic and livestock waste, and land use planning in upstream watersheds and riverbanks.
"The success of the Citarum Harum Program is evident in the increase of the water quality index (Indeks Kualitas Air/ IKA), the reduction of critical land areas and residential areas in the Bandung catchment area, the control of illegal constructions along the river and the raising of public awareness on the importance of protecting the Citarum River," he added.
To ensure the continuity of the Citarum Harum program, Basuki concluded, all stakeholders and elements of society are expected to work together for a clean, healthy, beautiful and sustainable Citarum River. (Firda Puri/TR/Elvira Inda Sari)
***
For more information, please contact:
Director General of Information and Public Communications, Ministry of Communications and Information – Usman Kansong (0816785320)
PCO 10th World Water Forum - Dede Ariwibowo (08111830020)
For more updates, please visit: https://infopublik.id/sistem/world-water-forum
https://s.id/worldwaterforumpedia
The Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing (MPWH) continues to support the Citarum Harum Program through the construction of a series of infrastructure related to the control of pollution and damage in the Citarum River Watershed (DAS) in West Java Province, Monday (6/22/2020). (Photo: courtesy of the MPWH).