Deputy DPD Chairman Appreciates Increase in National Rice Reserves
REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA – Deputy Chairman of the DPD RI Tamsil Linrung has appreciated the government’s achievement in driving a surge in national rice reserves to exceed 5 million tonnes. He assessed this accomplishment as concrete evidence that the direction of national food policy is on the right track in strengthening Indonesia’s food security and sovereignty, particularly from the perspective of regions as production bases.
Based on data from the Ministry of Agriculture as of 23 April 2026, the government’s rice reserves in Bulog warehouses have reached 5.2 million tonnes. This figure reflects a significant increase in production, largely supported by the performance of the agricultural sector in the regions.
“The rice reserves reaching 5.2 million tonnes must be seen as a collective success, especially the hard work of farmers in the regions. This is an important foundation towards sustainable food self-sufficiency,” said Tamsil, quoted from his press release after leading the DPD RI Plenary Session at the Parliamentary Complex, Senayan, on Thursday (23/4/2026).
According to him, this achievement is inseparable from various breakthroughs made by Minister of Agriculture Andi Amran Sulaiman, particularly in ensuring the availability of subsidised fertiliser, improving distribution governance, and accelerating the rehabilitation of irrigation networks in regional food production centres.
Tamsil emphasised that national production success must be accompanied by comprehensive strengthening of the agricultural ecosystem in the regions.
He reminded that the state’s role does not stop at increasing stocks, but also in ensuring fair distribution, price stability, and the welfare of farmers as the main actors.
“When fertiliser is available, irrigation is repaired, and policies favour regional farmers, production increases. But our task is not finished; this production must be distributed fairly to all regions, without creating new disparities,” he stressed.
Tamsil also appreciated the food self-sufficiency programme under President Prabowo Subianto’s administration, which he assessed as beginning to show real impacts, not only in increasing production but also in improving farmers’ welfare.
This is reflected in data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) showing that the rice farmer price index has consistently been above 130 points since June 2024. Even in March 2026, the index reached 144.52, an increase compared to March 2025 which was at 137.94.
Tamsil assessed that the current achievement places Indonesia on the right path towards food sovereignty. He called for policy consistency and distribution oversight to remain the main keys so that the benefits are truly felt by the entire society.
Separately, a lecturer from Bogor Agricultural Institute (IPB) University, Prima Gandhi, also appreciated the achievement as a quantitative indicator of improving national food production and governance.
“The achievement of rice reserves exceeding 5.2 million tonnes and the NTP at 144.52 shows that production and food governance, especially rice, are in an improving trend,” he said.
According to Prima, the combination of high rice stocks and increasing Farmer’s Exchange Value (NTP) is a strong signal that government agricultural policies are beginning to show real results.
“This means production is increasing and farmers are also getting better economic benefits. There is improvement in our agricultural ecosystem,” he said.
Nevertheless, he reminded the government not to become complacent with this achievement. He emphasised that large stocks do not automatically guarantee price stability at the farmer level or distribution efficiency.