Ministry of Agriculture rehabilitates 1,093 hectares of rice fields affected by disaster in North Aceh

Banda Aceh (ANTARA) - The Ministry of Agriculture (Kementan) has begun rehabilitating 1,093 hectares of community rice fields affected by flash floods and landslides in North Aceh Regency as part of efforts to restore the economy of the affected population, according to local officials. “The rehabilitation of rice fields carried out by the Ministry of Agriculture is part of the recovery of the economy for disaster-affected communities and maintaining food security,” said the Head of the Agriculture and Food Service of North Aceh, Erwandi, when contacted in Banda Aceh on Wednesday. He mentioned that the first phase of intervention by the Ministry of Agriculture for the 1,093 hectares of rice fields is being carried out in stages in the Sawang, Muara Baru, Dewantara, and Langkahan sub-districts. In more detail, he explained that the flash floods and landslides that occurred at the end of November in North Aceh Regency resulted in 18,316 hectares, or 46 percent of the total standard rice field area of 39,762 hectares, being affected. According to him, all agricultural sector data damaged by the disaster has been included in the post-disaster rehabilitation and reconstruction plan, with funding to come from the state budget through relevant ministries. “The Regent is also continuously striving to ensure that all community rice fields affected by the disaster can be fully rehabilitated so that the community can return to farming and the residents’ economy can recover quickly,” he said. His side believes that with the improvement of community rice fields, it will be able to accelerate economic recovery because the community in the area earns income as farmers and also contributes to maintaining food security.