House Commission IV Applauds Nusakambangan Food Security Programme

Cilacap (ANTARA) - Chair of the House Commission IV, Siti Hediati Hariyadi, has commended the food security programme developed by the Ministry of Immigration and Corrections on Nusakambangan Island for successfully converting unproductive land into an area producing various food commodities. After visiting several programme sites at correctional facilities on the island in Cilacap Regency, Central Java, on Saturday afternoon, she stated the success demonstrates that various food sectors can be optimally developed with the right will and creativity from managers. “Today (20/6), we from House Commission IV came to Nusakambangan to see firsthand the efforts to improve food security. We saw land that was previously unproductive now become productive, from rice, grapes, chicken farming, to shrimp and eel cultivation,” she said. According to her, the results achieved by the Nusakambangan prisons deserve to be a model for other regions or agencies with potential land to develop, in support of the national food self-sufficiency programme. She assessed that the success is inseparable from the commitment of the Ministry of Immigration and Corrections (Imipas) in utilising available resources to support the government’s priority programmes. “On behalf of House Commission IV, I express my gratitude and highest appreciation to the Minister of Imipas and his staff. Hopefully, this can be emulated and duplicated in other places,” said the legislator, familiarly known as Titiek Soeharto. She noted that the successful development of the food area on Nusakambangan proves that various regions in Indonesia have equal opportunities to increase food production if managed seriously. “If Nusakambangan can achieve this, other regions certainly can. Indonesia has fertile soil and vast natural resources. It is just a matter of how we cultivate this land and sea to provide the greatest benefit to the community,” she said. Besides producing various food commodities, the programme is also considered to have a social impact as it involves inmates in production activities. She said inmate involvement is an added value because they gain skills and incentives that can serve as provisions when they return to society. “More importantly, this programme involves inmates. Before they return to the community, they are equipped with skills and receive premiums from the work they do, which can be a provision when they are released later,” said Titiek. Meanwhile, Minister of Imipas Agus Andrianto said the visit by House Commission IV provided important input for refining the food security programme developed within the correctional system. “We thank the Chair of House Commission IV and her delegation for the visit. We will follow up on several evaluations and directives given to improve the ongoing programme,” he said. He stated that the utilization of unproductive land is not only carried out on Nusakambangan but is also applied in various prisons and detention centres across Indonesia. According to him, all correctional staff are encouraged to optimise available land to support food security, especially to meet the internal needs of inmates and officers. “This is also an effort to help the government maintain food price stability. For example, for egg needs, we encourage prisons and detention centres to produce their own so as not to add demand pressure on the market and contribute to inflation,” said Agus.