Bupati Bulungan Syarwani didampingi Ketua DPRD dan Sekda Bulungan menjelaskan program TAKE Bulungan Hijau. (Foto: Taslee/Radar Tarakan)
BULUNGAN — Bulungan Regency in North Kalimantan keeps raising incentives for villages that protect the environment. Through the TAKE Bulungan Hijau ecological fiscal transfer program, the budget has grown from Rp4 billion in 2023 to Rp5 billion in 2024, and Rp7 billion in 2026.
The number of recipient villages has also risen from 33 to 45. Bulungan Regent Syarwani presented the program during the Innovative Government Award (IGA) 2026 assessment on Thursday (5/11), Radar Tarakan reported.
Villages Scored on 24 Indicators
TAKE Bulungan Hijau is based on Regent Regulation No. 39 of 2022. Under the scheme, villages that perform well in protecting the environment receive additional budget allocations from the regency. Assessment is carried out by a working group of regional agencies, academics and media, using a digital app with six criteria and 24 indicators.
Indicators include waste management, vegetation cover and sustainable farming practices. This encourages villages not only to build infrastructure but also to look after their forests, rivers and farmland.
Ecology-based fiscal transfers like TAKE are increasingly adopted by regions as a concrete way to reward villages that care for the environment while strengthening village fiscal independence.
Summarized from Radar Tarakan (in Indonesian).
