Government to restore prawn farms and rice fields damaged by disaster

Jakarta — Indonesia’s Interior Minister Tito Karnavian has confirmed that the government will restore prawn farms and rice fields in Aceh and North Sumatra that were buried in mud as a result of disasters.

He stated that recovery efforts will be launched simultaneously following the Eid 2026 period.

According to Tito, the damaged prawn farms and rice fields must be restored so that communities can regain their livelihoods in the aftermath of the disaster.

“We have already conducted mapping and work will be carried out after Eid. We will immediately accelerate efforts to help the prawn farms buried in mud to be revived,” said Tito following a coordination meeting at the Ministry of Defence on Tuesday.

Tito explained that his ministry has coordinated with Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Sakti Wahyu Trenggono and Agriculture Minister Amran Sulaiman to implement the plan.

Subsequently, Tito continued, his ministry will map which rice fields can still be repaired or cannot. If the rice field can be repaired, the government will carry out restoration.

However, if the rice field is damaged beyond repair, the government will reclaim and reconfigure the land for communities.

Similar measures will also be applied to prawn farm land affected by the disaster.

Tito assured that the work will commence on schedule so that it can be completed more quickly in order to meet the economic needs of the community.

“I will definitely oversee it. Those words are important—I will oversee it,” Tito stressed firmly.