Yogyakarta Hosts the 2026 Railway Sports & Arts Festival, Bringing Together 1,632 Railway Professionals Ready to Excel

The spirit of sportsmanship, collaboration, and sustainability came alive as the 2026 Railway Sports & Arts Festival (Porseni Kereta Api 2026) officially opened in Yogyakarta on Tuesday (July 14). Carrying the theme "Spirit Competition, Power of Sustainability," this biennial event brings together 1,632 participants from 17 contingents representing KAI Group's operational regions, regional divisions, business units, and subsidiaries.

Participants come from diverse professional backgrounds and regions, including train operations, customer service, rolling stock and infrastructure maintenance, information technology, logistics, and various supporting functions. Despite their different roles and responsibilities, they share one common mission: delivering excellent service while ensuring safe, reliable, and sustainable railway operations across Indonesia.

This year's Porseni features an even more exciting lineup of competitions. Participants compete in nine sports: basketball, futsal, football, volleyball, table tennis, lawn tennis, badminton, chess, and the e-sports title Mobile Legends. In addition, the arts category showcases band performances and traditional dance competitions, providing opportunities for employees to express their creativity while celebrating Indonesia's rich cultural heritage and strengthening camaraderie across the organization.

KAI President Director Bobby Rasyidin explained that Porseni is more than a sporting competition. It serves as a platform for employees to channel their talents while building positive energy through healthy competition. According to him, the values demonstrated throughout the event—discipline, teamwork, creativity, sportsmanship, and mutual respect—reflect the same principles that guide KAI employees in serving customers every day. Although each operational region and business unit faces different challenges, they are united by the shared commitment to delivering safe, reliable, and high-quality railway services.

That commitment is reflected in the dedication of approximately 36,053 employees across KAI Group, including around 29,585 employees of KAI's parent company and assigned personnel working within its subsidiaries, along with employees throughout KAI Group companies. They perform a wide range of responsibilities, from stations, onboard train services, operation control centers, maintenance workshops, depots, and railway infrastructure to numerous supporting functions that ensure every train journey runs safely, comfortably, and on schedule.

The dedication of these employees has contributed significantly to the company's strong performance during the first half of 2026. Between January and June 2026, KAI Group served 258,993,359 passengers, an increase of 7.55 percent compared with 240,805,920 passengers during the same period in 2025. During the same six-month period, the company also transported 32.50 million tons of freight, supporting the nationwide distribution of energy commodities, industrial products, and logistics. These achievements were supported by continuous improvements in operational safety, service capacity, digital transformation, rolling stock maintenance, and multimodal connectivity.

According to Bobby, the success of serving hundreds of millions of passengers is the result of seamless collaboration among employees across every business function. Porseni therefore serves as both an appreciation for their dedication and an opportunity to strengthen relationships among colleagues through sports and the arts. The event encourages participants from different regions to exchange experiences, expand cross-unit collaboration, and foster stronger teamwork throughout KAI Group.

Compared with the previous edition, Porseni 2026 introduces several new highlights. Chess has been added as a new sporting event, while the arts competition has been expanded to include band performances and traditional dance. These additions provide more opportunities for employees with diverse interests and talents to participate, making the festival more inclusive while reinforcing the spirit of unity and healthy competition.

In line with this year's theme, "Spirit Competition, Power of Sustainability," environmental responsibility is also an integral part of the event. Participants are encouraged to bring reusable tumblers and dining utensils to help reduce single-use plastic waste throughout the festival.

As part of KAI's circular economy initiative, every participant is also invited to donate one unused white R6 uniform. These uniforms will be recycled into new products with practical value, supporting the company's efforts to minimize textile waste and promote sustainable resource management.

KAI's commitment to sustainability was also demonstrated through the planting of 25 productive trees at Balai Yasa Yogyakarta on Monday (July 13). The trees include mango, mundu, duku, jackfruit, and velvet apple varieties. As of July 13, 2026, KAI had planted a cumulative total of 99,785 trees since 2022, including 4,540 trees planted throughout 2026 across various operational areas.
These initiatives complement KAI's broader sustainability programs, including the operation of 113 Solar Power Systems (PLTS) across 92 locations, the gradual implementation of B50 biodiesel beginning July 1, 2026, and continued digital transformation through the Face Recognition Boarding Gate system. During the first half of 2026, the facial recognition service was used by more than 5.55 million long-distance train passengers, reducing the need for approximately 13,888 rolls of boarding pass paper and generating an estimated efficiency of Rp203.80 million. To further encourage environmentally friendly travel, KAI has also installed 124 free drinking water stations at 58 railway stations, enabling passengers to conveniently refill their reusable bottles.

Bobby emphasized that sustainability is not driven solely by corporate policies, but also by everyday habits practiced consistently by employees throughout the organization. Responsible energy use, efficient material management, environmentally conscious operations, and excellent customer service all play an important role in building a more sustainable railway company.
Through the 2026 Railway Sports & Arts Festival, KAI hopes to strengthen the values of sportsmanship, collaboration, innovation, and environmental stewardship across KAI Group. Beyond competing for medals and trophies, the festival serves as a meaningful opportunity to build stronger friendships, enhance collaboration across regions, and inspire positive energy that employees will bring back to their workplaces, ultimately supporting safer, more reliable, more comfortable, and more sustainable railway services for the people of Indonesia.