Ministry Aims for 500,000 Herctares of Rice Fields in South Kalimantan

Jakarta, VIVA – The Ministry of Agriculture is targeting the creation of 500,000 hectares of new rice fields in South Kalimantan to support the achievement of food self-sufficiency and strengthen national food security.

“We set 500,000 hectares for new rice fields. If this can be realized, it will be a significant boost for our food security,” said Minister of Agriculture Andi Amran Sulaiman during the Coordination Meeting on the People’s Rice Field Development Program held in Banjarbaru, South Kalimantan on Monday (Nov 7). 

The ministry is moving swiftly to realize food self-sufficiency in line with President Prabowo Subianto’s directives.

Besides efforts in Merauke and Central Kalimantan, the Ministry is also focusing on developing new rice fields in South Kalimantan.

Minister Sulaiman stated that South Kalimantan’s land potential could be utilized to meet Indonesia’s food needs, with plans to develop 500,000 hectares of new rice fields in the province.

He explained that this target would be achieved gradually. In the first phase, the ministry will develop 152,291 hectares across several regions, including Hulu Sungai Selatan, Hulu Sungai Tengah, Hulu Sungai Utara, Tanah Laut, and Tapin Regency.

The Ministry will then expand the program to other areas within South Kalimantan.

“Let’s take this seriously; we have a target of 500,000 hectares, and I’ll be checking each area. If production can reach two or three cycles, this could significantly boost our rice output,” the Minister emphasized. 

The rice field development will leverage technology in every stage, from land preparation and planting to harvesting and post-harvest processing.

To accelerate this process, the Ministry is collaborating with several companies committed to providing agricultural equipment and machinery (alsintan).

“Fourteen companies have committed to supplying equipment for the new rice fields, totaling around 2,000 units. We're moving quickly on this, and we’ve asked the Director-General of Agricultural Infrastructure to finalize the contracts within one to two days, with a maximum of three days,” the Minister stated.

Minister Sulaiman also highlighted the importance of youth involvement in the program through the Food Brigade, supervised by the Agricultural Extension and Human Resources Development Agency (BPPSDMP).

“We have a brigade where 15 individuals manage 200 hectares, equipped with modern technology. We want young farmers to take part,” he added.

Collaboration with various stakeholders is essential to the success of this rice field program, which aims to achieve food self-sufficiency.

During the coordination meeting, the Agriculture Ministry, along with the South Kalimantan Provincial Government, district and city governments in the region, the military, regional police, high courts, and Pupuk Indonesia, signed an agreement as a commitment to implement the rice field development program, accelerating rice production to bolster national food security.

The ministry is intensifying the rice field development program as a measure to maintain rice production amid challenges posed by climate change and geopolitical conditions.

“The President has asked us to accelerate this major initiative to achieve food self-sufficiency,” Minister Sulaiman concluded.