Surakarta City Government and Philanthropic Consortium Advance Safely Managed Sanitation Through Smart Sanitation Program

The Surakarta City Government, together with Pijar Foundation, Tahir Foundation, Gates Foundation, the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), and various cross-sector partners, has installed 15 Smart Sanitation systems across Surakarta to support safe domestic wastewater treatment and reuse.

SURAKARTA, 30 October 2026 – Access to safely managed sanitation in Indonesia stood at just 10.16%, according to a 2022 study by the Ministry of National Development Planning (Bappenas) and Statistics Indonesia (BPS). This gap highlights that sanitation challenges extend beyond the availability of facilities to ensuring that wastewater is properly managed to prevent contamination of water sources and protect public health.

In Surakarta, efforts to address these challenges have been strengthened through the Smart Sanitation program, which focuses on two primary objectives: reducing environmental pollution caused by domestic wastewater and enabling treated water to be reused for non-potable purposes, such as watering plants and maintaining green spaces. This approach is expected to help protect water resources while reducing groundwater consumption for activities that do not require potable water.

The program is an initiative of a philanthropic consortium comprising Pijar Foundation, Gates Foundation, and Tahir Foundation, in collaboration with the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) Thailand. Through this partnership, 15 domestic wastewater treatment systems have been installed across Surakarta, including at schools, public housing complexes, public facilities, and office buildings.

The installations were officially handed over to the Surakarta City Government in a symbolic ceremony held on 30 October 2026 at SMP Negeri 4 Surakarta.

"Smart Sanitation is an extraordinary initiative, particularly as we face the global challenge of water scarcity. This system offers a promising solution, and we have been given the opportunity to replicate it. We hope to expand its implementation across Surakarta to improve sanitation and ensure that communities have access to clean water that meets the required standards," said Respati during the handover ceremony at SMP Negeri 4 Surakarta on Friday (30 October 2026).

Smart Sanitation technology uses a decentralized wastewater treatment approach to reduce the discharge of wastewater contaminated with pathogens into soil, drainage systems, and rivers. The treated water can also support community social and economic activities while helping reduce excessive groundwater extraction.

According to Gates Foundation, the innovative approach introduced through the program has the potential to be further developed and scaled by the Surakarta City Government and local communities.

"For us, supporting this partnership means helping to test and demonstrate new approaches so that governments and local partners have the confidence to take them forward. Philanthropy can take risks in the early stages, but long-term impact can only be achieved when solutions are locally led and managed, from city governments and service providers to schools and communities," said Sakshi Gudwani, WASH Asia Leader at Gates Foundation.

Community engagement and cross-sector collaboration are essential to ensuring that innovations respond to local needs. In high-activity settings such as public housing complexes, schools, and public facilities, wastewater management requires systems capable of handling the volume of water used in daily activities.

"Technology alone is not enough. The success of this program depends on community participation and cross-sector collaboration to ensure that its benefits are sustained over time. We hope this partnership will continue to grow and remain strong in the years ahead," said Cazadira Fediva Tamzil, Executive Director of Pijar Foundation.

Meanwhile, the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) Thailand, as the program's technology development partner, highlighted the potential of wastewater treatment not only to reduce pollution but also to create opportunities for water reuse that benefits local communities.

"The Smart Sanitation installations in Surakarta demonstrate that we need to change the way we view wastewater. Wastewater should not always be seen as a problem. With the right technology, it can be safely treated and reused for non-potable purposes, transforming it into a valuable resource," said Prof. Thammarat Koottatep, Co-Director of the Global Water & Sanitation Center at the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) Thailand.

Indonesia's Ministry of Health welcomed the collaboration as an investment in environmental health and the prevention of diseases associated with pollution.

"Safely managed sanitation is a critical foundation for preventing environmentally related diseases, protecting water quality, and improving public health. We must move beyond basic sanitation toward safely managed sanitation. Safe sanitation is an investment in health and in creating a healthier environment for future generations," said Dr. dr. Then Suyanti, M.M., Director of Environmental Health at the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia.

Surakarta's experience is expected to provide valuable lessons for developing decentralized sanitation models in other Indonesian cities.

Making Water Conservation Part of Community Education

The long-term sustainability of sanitation also depends on the generations who will use and maintain these systems. To reinforce this commitment, the handover ceremony was followed by the Townhall Muda for Smart Sanitation at SMP Negeri 4 Surakarta, under the theme "From Adiwiyata Schools to a Sustainable Solo: Launching Smart Sanitation for a Generation That Cares About Water and the Environment."

"In the future, gold will be blue. I believe Smart Sanitation will become something fundamental, because proper sanitation is an essential need that we may not have given enough attention to until now," said Respati Achmad Ardianto, Mayor of Surakarta.

At schools, Smart Sanitation serves not only as a wastewater treatment facility but also as a hands-on learning resource. Students are introduced to wastewater management and water reuse through interactive sessions, visits to the treatment installations, a Healthy School Commitment Board, and a Student Pledge for Sanitation and Environmental Care.

Through schools, knowledge of safely managed sanitation is expected to develop into lasting habits. The children learning today to protect water resources and care for sanitation facilities are the generation that will one day shape how cities manage their water, environment, and public health.