Blora Achieves Food Security Target, Paving Way for UNY Campus and Investment

Blora Regency has successfully met the national target for designating Protected Rice Fields (LSD) and Sustainable Food Agriculture Land (LP2B). This provides certainty for a number of strategic regional programmes, from the establishment of a Study Programme Outside the Main Campus (PSDKU) of Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta (UNY) to investment development. Blora Regent Arief Rohman stated that Blora’s achievement in being among the 13 regencies and cities in Central Java with an LP2B percentage above 87 per cent is good news for several regional development agendas. ‘With Blora’s inclusion in the 13 regencies/cities that have met the LSD target, we are at around 88 per cent, thus entering the safe category and not subject to restrictions,’ Arief said. He stated that this certainty also supports the completion of various strategic licensing requirements, including the establishment of the UNY PSDKU in Blora Regency. ‘The permit to establish the UNY PSDKU in Blora has finally been completed. Blora’s status is included in the 13 regencies/cities above 87 per cent. Our LP2B is around 88 per cent. This is an important requirement for LSD, Sekolah Rakyat, and UNY campus establishment licensing,’ he explained. Arief emphasised that land designated as LP2B cannot be repurposed, as it is part of the commitment to maintaining national food security. The Regent has received two decrees: one regarding land use for the construction of a Sekolah Rakyat and another for the development of the UNY PSDKU campus. ‘We have also received the Minister of Agrarian Affairs and Spatial Planning/National Land Agency decree concerning the Recommendation for Land Use Change on Protected Rice Fields. It was handed over by the Director General of Land and Spatial Control and Enforcement,’ he said. Besides supporting the education sector, the LP2B designation is also considered to provide certainty for investment and serves as a basis for reviewing the Blora Regency Regional Regulation on Spatial Planning, which expired in 2021. ‘With this certainty, the investment tap is opening wider,’ said Regent Arief. Central Java Governor Ahmad Luthfi stated that Blora has proposed approximately 61,006 hectares of land as LP2B, or 88.23 per cent of the total raw rice field area of 69,145 hectares, exceeding the national minimum target. Deputy Minister Ossy Dermawan appreciated Central Java’s swift action, noting that the province’s sustainable food agricultural area data covers around 970 thousand hectares, equivalent to 85.11 per cent of the national target. For Blora, the 88.23 per cent LP2B achievement and the two ministerial decrees not only demonstrate a commitment to safeguarding food security but also open up space for accelerating development in education, investment, and directed spatial planning.