Bapanas: Food aid for 33.2 million beneficiary families to continue until September

The National Food Agency (Bapanas) has stated that the government is again distributing rice food aid to 33.2 million beneficiary families (KPM) from July to September 2026 to maintain public purchasing power while helping to stabilise rice prices. Director of Food Supply and Price Stabilisation at Bapanas, Maino Dwi Hartono, confirmed in Jakarta on Tuesday that the second phase of distribution will last for three months with an allocation of 10 kilograms of rice for each beneficiary family. “This is good news for people across Indonesia that in July, August, and September, for three months, there will be a second phase of food aid. There are three months of food aid distribution in the form of 10 kilograms of rice for around 33 million beneficiary families,” Maino said. He believes the distribution of rice aid to approximately 33.2 million beneficiary families will strengthen supply at the community level while helping to curb rice price increases at the consumer level. “Hopefully this can dampen rice prices because around 33 million households will receive 10 kg of rice aid for three months. July, August, September,” Maino added. He explained that the implementation of this year’s food aid programme has not experienced a gap because the government had previously extended the distribution of the February and March allocations until the end of June 2026. He added that the programme’s continuation is a directive from President Prabowo Subianto to ensure public protection continues while maintaining national food supply and price stability. For comparison, the rice food aid programme in 2025 only lasted for four months of allocation, namely June, July, October, and November, with a shorter coverage period. According to Maino, the government’s intervention through food aid has also had a positive impact on controlling food inflation, which is an important indicator of national economic stability. Meanwhile, monthly food inflation also decreased from 0.22 percent in May to 0.14 percent in June, with commodities such as shallots, garlic, and rice contributing. Furthermore, food inflation based on the calendar year from January to June 2026 was recorded at 1.61 percent, lower than the same period the previous year which reached 2.15 percent. Earlier, Head of Bapanas and Minister of Agriculture Andi Amran Sulaiman stressed that the government will continue to ensure public food access is maintained amid global challenges that could potentially affect rice supply availability. He added that the government is also continuing to strengthen food self-sufficiency in accordance with President Prabowo Subianto’s directives so that the sustainability of the food aid programme can reinforce food security towards the Golden Indonesia 2045 vision.