Ministry of Agriculture Strengthens Rice Field Expansion in Kalimantan to Accelerate Food Self-Sufficiency
The Ministry of Agriculture is strengthening the governance of the Rice Field Expansion Programme in the Kalimantan region through workshops for work plan preparation and coordination meetings for construction preparation. The goal is to ensure that the expansion of planting areas proceeds effectively to support the acceleration of food self-suficiency.
Hermanto, the Director General of Agricultural Land and Irrigation at the Ministry of Agriculture, stated that the activity, attended by 112 participants from across Kalimantan, aims to align the perceptions of all involved parties, including field supervisors, planning consultants, construction service providers, and programme implementers. He noted that aligning perceptions is essential to ensure all executors share the same mindset, particularly as the programme requires continuous improvements in governance based on lessons learned from previous years.
He mentioned that the government has identified critical points from previous implementations that could potentially hinder progress, necessitating anticipation from the planning stage through to field execution. All construction work must adhere to the previously prepared Survey Investigation Design (SID) documents; no work outside the established planning is permitted. Furthermore, consistency between e-Catalogue tender documents and field conditions is vital for maintaining work quality, including the availability of heavy machinery and necessary supporting resources.
Hermanto emphasised that the programme extends beyond mere land clearing to include the entire construction phase, such as land levelling, earthworks, the construction of supporting infrastructure, and land preparation until the area is ready for planting. Consequently, the government is adopting a cluster-based approach to ensure each stage is completed thoroughly in specific locations before moving to others, preventing finished land from being reclaimed by weeds or shrubs.
He stressed that the success of the programme requires support from all regional stakeholders, including district governments, the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI), technical departments, field supervisors, and construction providers, to ensure the results are not just physically complete but functionally optimal for agricultural production.
The government targets the creation of new rice fields spanning 400,000 to 480,000 hectares, supported by a budget of IDR 10 trillion. This national strategic programme is being implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture through the People’s Rice Field Expansion (CSR) programme, in direct synergy with the Indonesian Army (TNI AD). This massive land expansion aims to accelerate national food self-sufficiency, compensate for the loss of productive land due to land conversion, and establish new agricultural centres outside of Java.