Abstract:
Determining the characteristics of each region before carrying out development is a step
or strategy that can be applied. The characteristics are based on indicators of the public
welfare of regencies and cities in the northern area of Sumatra. This study discusses the
grouping of regencies and cities using cluster analysis with the average linkage method.
The variables used in this study are population density, open unemployment rate,
PDRB, percentage of poverty, percentage of households that do not have a toilet, life
expectancy, elementary school gross enrollment rate, and number of health centers. This
study recommends that regencies and cities in the northern area of Sumatra can be
clustered into 3 clusters based on the level of walfare. The results obtained from this
study are that there are 3 clusters. Cluster 1, consisting of 88 regencies and cities, is a
cluster with a low level of welfare, cluster 2 that consists of 5 regencies and cities is a
cluster with a high level of welfare, and cluster 3 that consists of 1 city is a cluster with
a moderate level of welfare.
