2700 Villages Experience Drought

The National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) reports that approximately 2,726 villages/sub-districts in Java and Nusa Tenggara are experiencing drought. This number comprises 715 sub-districts from 105 regencies/cities. The rainy season is not expected to begin until October-November 2017.

Central Java is the hardest hit area, with 1,254 villages across 275 sub-districts in 20 regencies experiencing drought. East Java follows with 588 drought-affected villages in 171 sub-districts across 23 regencies. In East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), drought has been declared an emergency in 9 regencies due to the drying up of water sources.

An estimated 3.9 million people are already affected by the drought and require clean water assistance. Furthermore, the drought has caused crop failure across 18,516 hectares of farmland. The drought is expected to continue until the end of October 2017, coinciding with the arrival of the rainy season.