Minister Amran alters regulations to ensure farm labourers can access agricultural machinery assistance
Prioritise agricultural machinery, pumps, and other equipment for farm labourers who do not own paddy fields, so that their welfare can increase.
Karawang, West Java (ANTARA) - The Minister of Agriculture, who also serves as the Head of the National Food Agency (Bapanas), Andi Amrit Sulaiman, has changed the regulations for agricultural machinery and equipment (alsintan) assistance, so that landless farm labourers can obtain machinery to improve their welfare.
“We have changed the regulations. We have signed them. Prioritise agricultural machinery, pumps, and so on, for farm labourers who do not have paddy fields, so that their welfare increases,” said the Minister during a working visit to Karawang, West Java, on Monday.
This policy represents a new step by the Ministry of Agriculture to expand the equitable distribution of the benefits of agricultural modernisation. Farm labourers, who have previously worked on lands owned by others, can now form groups and access machinery assistance to be managed productively.
Amran stated that the policy change was implemented after he personally observed the conditions of farm labourers in the field.
During the working visit to Karability, the Minister found farm labourers earning only around Rp30,000 per day, with work opportunities occurring only about two to three times a week.
In his view, this condition must change. Previously, land ownership and membership in farmer groups were factors that made access to assistance easier for land-owning farmers. Meanwhile, farm labourers, who are a vital part of the production process, often lacked their own production facilities.
This limited access must not be an obstacle for farm labourers to increase their income. Therefore, the government is opening opportunities for farm labourers to become both recipients and managers of agricultural machinery, which can be used to provide services to farmers in their area.
“Until now, only paddy field owners were formed into groups. Now, we are prioritising farm labourers so that their income increases. Those who own paddy fields have also been provided for, but we are prioritising those who have not yet received assistance,” he added.
To implement this policy, the Minister requested that field agricultural extension officers (PPL) go directly into the field to collect data on farm labourers who do not yet have groups. PPLs are also asked to assist in forming groups and submitting proposals to the Ministry of Agriculture for verification.
“Farm labourers should form groups. The PPL will assist in grouping them and sending the data to the centre. It can be done online, and we will send the goods directly, but there will be verification. A group of ten people is fine. This starts today,” he emphasised.
The Minister stated that the policy does not require groups to be large. Even groups consisting of approximately 10 farm labourers can be formed and proposed, provided they meet the requirements and pass field verification.
The machinery that can be provided includes various needs for agricultural service businesses, such as pumps, harvesting tools, two-wheel tractors (TR2), four-wheel tractors (TR4), and other agricultural equipment.
The assistance is not intended solely to be an asset for the group. The machinery must be managed productively so that it can become a new source of income for farm labourers through services such as land preparation, planting, harvesting, and other agricultural needs.
“Imagine the income is Rp30,000, twice a week. A month would mean about Rp240,000. If they have the equipment and work serving farmers, earning Rp5 million per month (by renting out machinery like combine harvesters) would be great. Rather than (earning only) Rp240,000,” he said.
The Minister believes this scheme can also create a new ecosystem at the village level. Farm labourers will no longer rely solely on daily labour opportunities but can possess business facilities that generate income from providing machinery services to farmers.
Thus, agricultural modernisation does not stop at the use of technology on the land, but also opens new economic opportunities for the community members who have long been the primary workforce in the agricultural sector.
Amran emphasised that this regulatory change is part of the government’s efforts to implement the directives of President Prabowo Subianto, ensuring that the transformation of agriculture from a traditional system to a modern one is truly felt by the common people in even the most remote areas.