President Prabowo Fully Supports Sasakawa Foundation's Efforts to Eradicate Leprosy in Indonesia

JAKARTA Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto has given his full support to the Sasakawa Foundation, which is committed to helping Indonesia eliminate leprosy.

This was announced by Yohei Sasakawa, WHO Honorary Ambassador for Leprosy Elimination and Chairman of the Nippon Foundation, after meeting with President Prabowo in Hambalang, Bogor, on Friday, January 16, 2026.

“He has shown his full support for us to carry out various activities to eliminate this disease,” said Yohei Sasakawa in a press conference at the Kempinski Hotel, Jakarta.

Yohei further said that the Indonesian people still have misinformation regarding the treatment of leprosy. He did not deny that people with leprosy or even survivors of leprosy often face negative stigma in society.

“When it comes to eliminating discrimination or stigma, comprehensive national support is needed so that society no longer discriminates against them. Therefore, this is one of the approaches where we are asking for the full support of the President,” said Yohei.

On the same occasion, influencer Arnold Saputra expressed his interest in helping the Sasakawa Foundation  reach out to the younger generation regarding leprosy treatment.

Arnold will contribute by raising awareness about leprosy treatment and conveying the message to the public not to discriminate against people with leprosy.

“So the first step is online education through social media, where I and several friends and other online figures will inform people that leprosy is not what we all think it is,” said Arnold.

“So actually (leprosy, ed.) is not easily transmitted, and the medicines provided by Sasakawa and his team to Indonesia are all free,” he said. (*)