ACEH TENGAH, May 2026 — Half a year after Tropical Cyclone Senyar unleashed devastating floods and landslides across Aceh province, the Tsunami and Disaster Mitigation Research Center (TDMRC) of Universitas Syiah Kuala (USK) continues to make its presence felt on the ground. Working through the Emergency Disaster Food Division (Divisi Pangan Darurat Bencana) under the USK Task Force for Senyar Aceh Response (Satgas USK), a TDMRC team has distributed 2,100 ready-to-eat meal packages to residents of two disaster-affected villages in Kabupaten Aceh Tengah: Desa Waq Toweren and Desa Toweren Toa. The entire initiative is funded by public donations channelled through Rumah Amal USK, the university’s philanthropic arm.
The process of distributing ready-to-eat meals to residents
When a major disaster strikes, food aid dominates the first few days. Kitchens are set up, supply chains mobilised, and hot meals delivered. But as weeks and months pass, public attention fades, even as food insecurity quietly persists. Families rebuilding damaged homes, farmers whose fields were buried under sediment, and households whose livelihoods were disrupted for months often continue to struggle with access to adequate nutrition long after the emergency phase ends. 
This is the gap that TDMRC’s Emergency Disaster Food Division was established to address. Six months into the Senyar recovery, the division’s field team headed back to Kabupaten Aceh Tengah — not for a one-off handover, but as part of a sustained pattern of community support that has defined TDMRC’s engagement since the disaster began.
2,100 Meals, Two Villages, One Continued Commitment…
The 2,100 ready-to-eat meal packages were distributed across two villages that have been focal points of TDMRC’s humanitarian engagement in Aceh Tengah:
The residents’ joy as they taste the ready-to-eat meals
Desa Waq Toweren (Village Head: Abdul Habir) — This village has been a site of repeated, layered engagement by Satgas USK. Earlier in 2026, 165 Ramadhan preparation packages were delivered here by TDMRC and Rumah Amal USK. USK students completing their Disaster-Themed Community Service Programme (KKN Tematik Kebencanaan) also carried out educational and resilience-building activities in the village in early February. The delivery of ready-to-eat meals marks yet another chapter in this sustained relationship.
The process of boiling the ready-to-eat meals to make them more enjoyable to eat
Desa Toweren Toa (Village Head: Ali Hasimi) — This neighbouring village experienced comparable impacts from the floods, with households facing prolonged disruption to livelihoods and food supply. The distribution here directly targets those continuing to navigate the slow, uneven process of recovery.
The decision to use ready-to-eat meal packages for this distribution reflects a considered choice: in communities still dealing with damaged cooking infrastructure or limited fuel access, shelf-stable, prepared food provides immediate nutritional relief without placing additional burden on households. It also signals that this visit is not a symbolic gesture but a targeted intervention based on an understanding of what communities actually need at this stage of recovery.
“We hope this assistance will provide lasting benefit to the community. USK will continue to be present and contribute meaningfully — through both humanitarian aid and community service activities — because true recovery from disaster requires sustained presence, not just a one-time response.”
— Prof. Syamsidik, Director, TDMRC USK
