Minister of Public Works outlines strategy to address prolonged dry season by safeguarding food security

Boyolali, Central Java (ANTARA) - The Minister of Public Works (PU), Dody Hanggodo, has outlined strategies to address the prolonged dry season resulting from El Niño, with the aim of safeguarding food security.

“I said there are still several ways we can implement. First, weather modification operations so that the upstream areas of these dams are rained upon, allowing rainwater to gradually flow into the reservoirs,” Dody stated in Boyolali, Central Java, on Sunday.

The Ministry of Public Works is also coordinating with the Ministry of Agriculture to prepare pump irrigation systems to water rice fields that can no longer receive water from weirs or reservoirs.

“Second, together with the Minister of Agriculture, we will carry out a pump irrigation programme. Pump irrigation has been successfully implemented in previous years and helped prevent a national decline in agricultural production,” Dody said.

For context, the Minister of Agriculture, Andi Amran Sulaiman, has guaranteed rice stocks amid the threat of drought due to the El Niño phenomenon predicted for this year.

Minister Amran stated that the current national rice stock is in the safest condition in the history of the Republic of Indonesia, with reserves sufficient to meet needs for the next 10 months.

He explained that the current stock does not include that which will be harvested in the coming months.

He projects a minimum production of two million tons per month for the next seven months.

This, he said, means it can generate total reserves of up to 14 million tons, predicted to cover needs until May 2027.

The El Niño threat typically lasts only six months, so it will not significantly impact food stocks.