Jakarta, 11 March, 2026 – Minister of Creative Economy/Head of the Creative Economy Agency Teuku Riefky Harsya discussed the proposal to position Bogor as a Gastronomy City as part of the global creative city network through the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN). The Minister also emphasized the urgency of strengthening Bogor’s culinary sector so that it can gain greater recognition at both national and international levels.
Minister of Creative Economy, Teuku Riefky Harsya, received an audience with the Forum Bogor Kota Gastronomi (FBKG) at the Ministry of Creative Economy Office, Jakarta, Wednesday (11/3/2026).
“Of course, the positioning or effort for Bogor City to become a Gastronomy City under UCCN is worth pursuing. The requirement is that the report card required by UNESCO must be aligned with the standards or meet the criteria for designation. If the local government has previously proposed another leading subsector, it is possible to conduct a re-assessment or reposition the potential focus from performing arts to culinary,” said Minister Teuku Riefky during the meeting with the Forum Bogor Kota Gastronomi held at Thamrin Nine, Jakarta, on Wednesday, March 11, 2026.
On November 26, 2025, the City of Bogor agreed to designate performing arts as its leading subsector. The agreement was documented in the Minutes of the Creative Regency/City Self-Assessment Verification Results (PMK3I) and signed by the Mayor of Bogor, representatives of creative economy practitioners, academics, communities, and media in Bogor.
“Please discuss again with the Bogor Regional Government whether they would like to shift to the gastronomy subsector or maintain performing arts. Whatever the outcome, the Ministry of Creative Economy is ready to support the mentoring process so that the potential of Bogor’s culinary subsector can receive stronger ecosystem support and the right collaborations. In addition, the opportunity to advance to the global creative city network will become increasingly open,” said Minister of Creative Economy Teuku Riefky.
Doc. Bureau for Communication, Ministry of Creative Economy/Creative Economy Agency.
Special Staff to the Minister for Strategic and Inter-Agency Issues at the Ministry of Creative Economy, Rian Syaf, who also attended the meeting, stated that the Ministry continuously identifies potential leading subsectors in regions through the Creative Regency/City Self-Assessment (PMK3I) activity. According to him, the process toward international recognition requires systematic stages, starting from strengthening the status as a creative regency/city to fulfilling the standards set by UNESCO.
Referring to the requirements for UCCN submission, which are also agreed upon by the Indonesian National Commission for UNESCO (KNIU), the nomination of candidate members for the UCCN must have participated in the Creative Regency/City Self-Assessment (PMK3I) in a field that is aligned with the PMK3I results.
“So, every city or regency must go through quite a long process starting from coordination, mentoring, to the selection stage. Colleagues can coordinate with the Directorate of Infrastructure Facilitation at the Ministry of Creative Economy so that the effort toward UCCN can be pursued. Based on comparisons with previous submissions, culinary has not yet become the main supporting factor, but rather serves as a supporting element for the performing arts ecosystem that was previously proposed,” added Rian Syaf.
Doc. Bureau for Communication, Ministry of Creative Economy/Creative Economy Agency.
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Bogor Gastronomy City Forum, Haidhar Wurjanto, stated that Bogor already has a complete gastronomic ecosystem, ranging from sources of raw ingredients and culinary traditions to support from academics and creative communities. The Bogor Gastronomy City Forum believes that developing a gastronomic identity can become a strategy to strengthen the tourism and creative economy sectors in Bogor City, while also introducing the richness of Sundanese cuisine to the global stage.
During the meeting, the Bogor Gastronomy City Forum, which was newly established on February 4, 2026, presented the strength of Bogor’s culinary ecosystem, which is not only based on the diversity of food but also includes history, culture, and the traditional knowledge system of the Sundanese community that has developed for hundreds of years. Based on studies conducted by the forum, gastronomic practices in Bogor have a long historical footprint, including documentation of cooking methods and food culture that have been recorded since the 15th century.
“We need guidance from the Ministry of Creative Economy to improve the administrative aspects and technical coordination that we will carry out moving forward. We hope to receive direction on how to undertake the technical process so we can learn from other cities on the path toward UCCN. We remain optimistic and positive about competing in a healthy way so that the growth and quality of culinary development continue to improve every year and increase the number of tourists visiting Bogor,” added Haidhar Wurjanto.
Doc. Bureau for Communication, Ministry of Creative Economy/Creative Economy Agency.
In today’s meeting, Minister of Creative Economy Teuku Riefky was accompanied by Director of Marketing System and Institutional Relations Radi Manggala, Director of Culinary Andy Ruswar, and the Minister’s Expert Staff Gemintang Kejora Mallarangeng. Meanwhile, representatives of the Bogor Gastronomy City Forum who attended included Vice Chair 1 Catura Pasha, Vice Chair 2 Rizky N. Hidayat, Secretary Fariduddin Attar, as well as other administrators and creative economy practitioners from Bogor City.
Kiagoos Irvan Faisal
Head of Bureau for Communication
Ministry of Creative Economy/Creative Economy Agency
