Indonesia Fosters University Response to NTT Earthquake

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta - Indonesia’s Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology expands coordination with universities in responding to the impact of the earthquake in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT). In addition to ensuring the safety of academic communities and the continuity of education, the ministry is encouraging universities to support affected communities according to their respective capacities.

The commitment was reinforced through a hybrid coordination meeting led by Minister of Higher Education, Science, and Technology, Brian Yuliarto with university rectors from East Nusa Tenggara and West Nusa Tenggara on Tuesday August 18, 2026. The meeting was part of the ministry’s efforts to assess conditions at universities and among academic communities while coordinating response measures and support that institutions can provide in affected areas.

He emphasized that universities have a strategic role during disasters, not only in maintaining the continuity of education but also by mobilizing their expertise, resources, and networks to assist affected communities. “Our current priority is to ensure the safety of all academic communities and to ensure that the response is carried out quickly and in a coordinated manner,” Brian said.

Several universities in NTT have also taken immediate action to provide assistance to disaster-affected communities. According to the Regional Higher Education Service Institution (LLDikti) Region XV, their responses have included establishing emergency posts, distributing logistics, providing health services and trauma healing, and deploying students, lecturers, and education personnel to affected areas.

Cristo Re Polytechnic, for example, established an emergency response post on its campus while coordinating with local government posts and the Caritas Indonesia command post. During the first two days of the response, its academic community also evacuated students participating in community service programs who were injured by debris from a collapsed house at their service location.

A total of 62 lecturers, instructors, and students from Cristo Re Polytechnic helped distribute logistics from the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) warehouse to Palue, Kangae, and Talibura. They also set up five tents at dr. T.C. Hillers Regional General Hospital and Gelora Samador, distributed food and tarpaulins to 11 affected families in Tarunggawang Village, Sikka Regency, in cooperation with Caritas Maumere Diocese, and supplied clean water through nine water tanks.

In Ende, nuns, lecturers, and student representatives from Santa Ursula Ende School of Community Development also distributed basic food packages to affected residents in Mbay, Nagekeo Regency. Meanwhile, the Faculty of Health Sciences at Nusa Nipa University joined the Sikka District Health Office in providing health services and trauma healing for displaced residents at Gelora Samador and several other emergency posts.

The Ministry has expressed appreciation for universities working alongside local governments, humanitarian organizations, health workers, and communities in responding to the post-disaster situation. The ministry will also continue coordinating with LLDikti Region XV and universities in NTT to monitor the condition of academic communities and support the role of higher education institutions in the response and recovery efforts for communities affected by the earthquake.