West Flanders: Carl Decaluwé leaves the governorate, Koen Surdiacourt takes over as interim

The Flemish government granted, on September 30, 2026, an honorable discharge to Carl Decaluwé as governor of the province of West Flanders, effective October 1, 2026. In the same session, it appointed Koen Surdiacourt as acting provincial governor until October 30, 2026. Both decisions were published in the Belgian Official Gazette on October 6, 2026, page 53149, under references C − 2026/007231 and C − 2026/007232.

An honorable discharge granted by decree of the Flemish government

The first decision, published under reference C − 2026/007231, concerns the honorable discharge of the governor of the province of West Flanders. It is dated September 30, 2026, and was issued by the Flemish government.

• Article 1: an honorable discharge is granted to Carl Decaluwé as of October 1, 2026, ending his duties as governor of the province of West Flanders.
• Article 2: the person concerned is authorized, as of the same date, to hold the honorary title of the office.
• Article 3: the decision is notified to the person concerned.
• Article 4: the Flemish minister competent for internal administration and urban policy is charged with its execution.

A one-month interim at the head of the province

The second decision, published under reference C − 2026/007232, organizes the succession at the head of the province. Koen Surdiacourt is appointed acting provincial governor of the province of West Flanders until October 30, 2026. Before accepting this position, he takes an oath before the Flemish Minister of the Interior, Urban and Rural Policy, Coexistence, Integration and Civic Inclusion, Administrative Affairs, Social Economy and Sea Fishing. The decision enters into force on October 1, 2026, the day after its signature and the same day as the end of his predecessor’s duties.

The interim is therefore strictly limited in time: it runs from October 1 to October 30, 2026, without the published text indicating the date on which a permanent governor will be appointed.

A central position for civil security and water management

The provincial governorship is not a simple administrative function. The provincial governor is the competent authority for civil security at the provincial level, within the framework established notably by the royal decree of May 22, 2019, regarding emergency planning and the management of emergency situations at the municipal and provincial levels, which regulates the role of mayors and provincial governors.

In West Flanders, these assignments are supplemented by a specific competence over the coastline and coastal wetlands. The protocol relating to the water flow of the Dunkirk-Veurne-Les Moëres sector and the coordinated management of works, published in the Belgian Official Gazette on August 18, 2026, thus designates the Governor of West Flanders as the decision-making authority in exceptional situations and as the chairman of the Yser basin committee. The same protocol entrusts the Province of West Flanders with the supervision of the proper functioning of the polders, the project management of the Speievaart emergency pumping station, and the ownership of this structure on the Nieuport-Dunkirk canal.

Publication and Scope

The two decrees are published in the Belgian Official Gazette of October 6, 2026, on page 53149, under the official references C − 2026/007231 and C − 2026/007232. They appear in the section dedicated to community and regional governments, under the heading Vlaamse overheid.

For readers, the change is therefore twofold: a governor who has been in office for several years is leaving his duties with the honorary title of his position, and the province is managed on an interim basis for one month. During this period, Koen Surdiacourt exercises the prerogatives attached to the governorship, including those related to crisis coordination and water management in the west of the country.

Source: Belgian Official Gazette of October 6, 2026, p. 53149 — C − 2026/007231 and C − 2026/007232.