Bapanas Chief: Additional Rice Warehouses in South Papua to Maintain Surplus

The Head of the National Food Agency (Bapanas), who also serves as Minister of Agriculture, Andi Amran Sulaiman, has requested that the State Logistics Agency (Bulog) construct additional rice warehouses in Merauke, South Papua. The move is intended to maintain the production surplus and strengthen food reserves in the region. “Insya Allah, it will be built this year. We will prepare the warehouse. If farmers here produce, it will be bought immediately, at a profitable price, not below Rp6,500. That is the President’s instruction,” Amran stated in a confirmed statement in Jakarta on Wednesday. The government is accelerating agricultural development in the Papua region, particularly to establish it as a national food barn. According to Amran, the empowerment of local farmers in Merauke, South Papua, demonstrates the government’s seriousness in increasing rice production, which in 2025 has surpassed the annual household consumption needs according to Bapanas. He noted that this production surplus over consumption can strengthen the government’s rice reserves (CBP) held by Bulog and the regional government’s food reserves (CPPD). Data from Statistics Indonesia (BPS) shows that the index of prices received by food crop farmers in South Papua has consistently moved positively from 2024 to 2026. In January 2024, the index stood at 111.42, rising to 113.83 by December 2024. The progress continued with the index reaching 114.72 in December 2025, and most recently climbing to 115.33 in June 2026, marking a total increase of 3.91 index points since January 2024.