RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta - Indonesia’s largest annual dessert celebration, Jakarta Dessert Week (JDW) 2026, is set to return from August 24 to September 13 with a bold and unconventional twist: placing dangdut music at the heart of its culinary concept.

Officially included in the national Kharisma Event Nusantara (KEN) 2026 calendar, the city-wide festival invites pastry chefs, dessert artisans, and food establishments to translate the rhythm, spirit, and heritage of dangdut into expressive culinary creations. Once viewed purely as a popular music genre, dangdut is being leveraged as an inclusive cultural symbol that bridges generations and serves as an effective medium for soft-power diplomacy.

The three-week festival will feature four main program pillars designed to engage both industry professionals and the general public: an Industry and Media Gathering, a City Takeover spanning dozens of participating cafes across Jakarta, a public marketplace titled Dessert Markt, and the prestigious Golden Swirl Awards 2026.

The Ministry of Creative Economy/Creative Economy Agency (Kemenekraf/Bekraf) has expressed strong support for the initiative, framing the convergence of gastronomy and music as a strategic model for macroeconomic growth.

Creative Economy Minister Teuku Riefky Harsya emphasized that cross-subsector integration creates a powerful multiplier effect, unlocking new market opportunities for local creators.

"The national culinary industry cannot stand alone without linking to other creative subsectors. When these diverse creative disciplines collaborate and interact harmoniously, a richer new cultural experience is born, opening up fresh economic opportunities for creative industry players," Minister Teuku said, as quopted on Ministry's official website.

Highlighting the financial weight of both sectors, ministry data shows that the culinary subsector leads creative investments at IDR 29.57 trillion (USD1.82 billion) (a 41.06 percent contribution), while the music industry accounts for IDR 5.14 trillion (0.54 percent).

"Through this year's dangdut theme, we invite pastry chefs, dessert artisans, and food industry players to translate the vibrant spirit of popular music into expressive culinary creations, this artistic collaboration simultaneously strengthens local culture as an effective national soft power instrument on the global stage," Minister Teuku added.

By implementing the collaborative framework, the government aims to position local culinary innovation as a driver of economic expansion and a compelling narrative for Indonesian culture internationally. ***