Thought for food<\/p>\n
The drought currently plaguing several regions of Indonesia
\ncould not have come at a worse time. If United Nations research
\nfindings published this week are correct, an estimated 7.5
\nmillion Indonesians now face food insecurity that could last
\nuntil early next year if the present prolonged dry season
\ncontinues much longer.<\/p>\n
The people most threatened, according to a separate United
\nNations Development Program statement issued this week, \"are in
\nthe bottom third of the eight million rural families who... live
\nunder chronic marginal circumstances, or on less than two meals a
\nday\". In other words, those threatened are the poorest of the
\npoor in this country. In a number of areas, especially in remote
\nIrian Jaya and elsewhere in eastern Indonesia, food shortages
\naggravated by poor communications and brush and forest fires have
\nled to the death of thousands of people.<\/p>\n
Since the drought is one of the main reasons behind the
\ndeteriorating food situation, the prospects for the near future
\nare not looking very promising indeed. The El Nino freak weather
\nphenomenon has not only delayed last year's onset of the rainy
\nseason in Indonesia, but has kept rainfall well below the normal
\nyearly average in almost every region of the country. Although it
\nappears that El Nino has begun to subside, its impact continues
\nto linger and is not expected to disappear until the end of this
\nmonth at the earliest. Obviously, the unusual weather has wreaked
\nhavoc with the country's food production.<\/p>\n
Farmers, particularly in the rice producing areas of Central
\nand East Java, have been compelled by drought to switch from
\nplanting rice to planting secondary crops such as soybeans,
\ncassava and corn, forcing rice production down well below target.
\nAccording to one estimate, only 40 percent of the latest rice
\nproduction targets for Java has been achieved.<\/p>\n
As a result, UN and Indonesian experts believe that the
\ncountry will have to import a record amount of rice this year --
\nan amount that could reach anywhere from a minimum of four
\nmillion tons to eight million tons to more than 12 million tons
\nunder a worst-case scenario. As early as last February, the World
\nBank warned that Indonesia would have to import at least four
\nmillion tons of rice.<\/p>\n
This would have been bad enough under normal circumstances.
\nBut with the economic crisis still continuing unabated, it is
\ndoubtful, to say the least, that the country can afford spending
\nsuch amounts of money on rice imports out of its own coffers. The
\nfood assistance offered by such multinational organizations as
\nthe World Bank, as well as by individual countries, is therefore
\nmost welcome. Still, a few other consequences of the economic
\ncrisis concerning the food situation must be considered. For
\nexample, a lack of funds has forced many farmers to reduce the
\namount of fertilizer they utilize while using inferior seeds,
\nwhich again leads to reduced harvests.<\/p>\n
Clearly, the ongoing crisis is putting an extra burden on the
\nshoulders of the authorities. It took much time, effort and
\nexpense during the years of growing prosperity to educate and
\nhelp farmers achieve higher levels of production. Now, as funds
\nhave become severely limited, it is easy to see that this task
\nhas become considerably harder. Yet, such efforts must be
\ncontinued or possibly even stepped up under the prevailing
\ncircumstances. The food aid to be provided by Indonesia's friends
\nabroad will certainly help. However, it may not be enough to
\nsatisfy the needs of our more than 200 million people.<\/p>\n
It would seem that present circumstances are giving renewed
\nrelevance to the campaign, held on several occasions in the past,
\nto persuade people to shed their almost total dependence on rice
\nas a staple food. While becoming excessively alarmed over the
\nsituation would do no one any good, it would certainly be wise
\nfor Indonesians to do all that is in their power to overcome
\ntheir present misfortunes.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/thought-for-food-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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