Minister PPN: Palm Oil Downstreaming Must Be Accompanied by Upstream Strengthening

National Development Planning Minister/Head of the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) Rachmat Pambudy has emphasised that the development of palm oil industry downstreaming must be accompanied by strengthening the ecosystem from the upstream to downstream sectors.

“Downstreaming cannot proceed if the ecosystem does not develop; downstreaming cannot proceed if the upstream is not managed properly,” he said in a statement in Jakarta on Monday.

According to him, palm oil industry downstreaming will not run optimally if upstream sector management is not carried out properly and sustainably. Therefore, plantation development, productivity improvements, and the processing of palm oil derivative products must operate within a single ecosystem.

Rachmat Pambudy said strengthening the upstream and downstream sectors must be carried out simultaneously so that the benefits of the palm oil industry can be felt widely by the public.

“Plantations and agriculture are part of national development; good planning that is merely implemented is not enough, it must be felt properly,” he said at the closing of the Sawit Indonesia Expo & Conference (SIEXPO) 2026 in Pekanbaru, Riau.

In this regard, Rachmat assessed that SIEXPO can serve as a space to bring together various stakeholders while unifying the direction of national palm oil industry development.

He expressed hope that future palm oil industry development will not only be oriented towards increasing production, but will also be able to create added value and expand economic benefits for the public.