Agriculture Minister Assures Sufficient Rice Stock to Face El Niño

Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman has ensured the availability of rice stocks to face the El Niño phenomenon or prolonged dry season that will last for six months. “The El Niño we are facing from 2023 is bigger. So this El Niño we are facing is six months, right? Our reserves, Bulog’s reserves are 4.3 million tonnes now,” said Amran Sulaiman at the Coordinating Ministry for Food Office on Monday, 30 March 2026.

In addition to guaranteeing the availability of rice stocks in Bulog warehouses, Amran Sulaiman explained that there are rice supplies from several sources, such as the hotel and restaurant industry, estimated at 12.5 million tonnes. Meanwhile, the rice still in the standing crop phase is estimated at 11 million tonnes.

He estimated that national rice stocks could meet needs for 10 to 11 months, assuming consumption of 2.5–2.6 million tonnes per month. “What does that mean? Until next year’s peak harvest (namely) March, our rice is sufficient,” he stated.

Amran Sulaiman then compared the government’s experience in facing El Niño this year with the previous year. He cited that in 2023 and 2024, the government only began working to address El Niño when the season arrived.

However, currently, the Agriculture Minister said the government has made preparations to face El Niño well in advance. For example, through an irrigation programme covering approximately 1 million hectares and the distribution of around 60,000-70,000 pump units throughout Indonesia. “Like in battle, our preparedness is thorough, safe,” he said.