Rice import ban to be extended

Rice import ban to be extended

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Ministry of Agriculture has asked the Ministry of Industry
and Trade to extend the ban on rice imports until August as rice
stocks are currently sufficient to meet national demand for the
commodity.

"Rice stocks are now at an adequate level in all provinces,
thanks to good harvests," Director General of Food Plant
Production Supervision at the Ministry of Agriculture M. Jafar
Hafsah was quoted by Antara as saying on Thursday.

He said national rice stocks totaled six million tons to seven
million tons, including 1.9 million tons to 2 million tons held
by the State Logistics Agency (Bulog) and four million tons to
five million tons held by traders and farmers.

With national consumption of 2.5 million tons per month,
stocks were adequate for a few months' consumption, he said.

Furthermore, quoting a prediction by the Central Statistics
Agency (BPS), Jafar said national unhusked rice output was
expected to increase to 53.67 million tons this year from 52.8
million tons last year, thanks to good harvests.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade first imposed a ban on rice
imports in January, effective until June 1, in order to protect
farmers and help improve their welfare. It later extended the ban
until July.

Under the current system, the Ministry of Agriculture has the
right to decide whether or not rice imports should be banned.
However, the Ministry of Industry and Trade issues the decree to
implement the decision.

In past years, the country imported 1.8 million tons to 2
million tons of rice per year.
Some analysts have criticized the import ban policy, arguing it
will raise the price of rice at home and eventually hurt farmers
as they are also net consumers of rice.

The critics said government policies should aim at boosting
the productivity and efficiency of the agriculture sector in
order to help farmers compete with cheaper, imported rice
products.

However, Jafar said the import ban had proved effective in
raising the price of local farmers' rice, adding that farmers now
sell their unhusked rice at around the government-set price level
of Rp 1,230 (about 13 US cents) per kilogram. Prior to the import
ban, farmers usually sold their rice more cheaply in order to
compete with low-priced imported rice.