Rice output to increase this year
Rice output to increase this year
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia's rice production, which fell four
percent in 1994, is expected to expand some this year, but remain
lower than 1993's level.
"According to the latest projection of the Central Bureau of
Statistics, this year's rice production is likely to grow by 1.5
percent from last year's level," State Minister for National
Development Planning Ginandjar Kartasasmita told reporters after
a meeting with President Soeharto at the Bina Graha office
yesterday.
Minister of Agriculture Sjarifudin Baharsjah and Minister of
Public Works Radinal Moochtar also attended yesterday's meeting.
The announcement indicates that this year's rice production
will not offset last year's output decline, which was caused
mainly by a severe drought.
Indonesia's rice production decreased by four percent last
year to 46.40 million tons of unhusked rice from 1993. The
drought forced the country to import a significant amount of rice
for the first time in years.
Indonesia achieved rice self-sufficiency in 1984 after being
the world's largest rice importer for decades.
Ginandjar's statement shows that the government has abandoned
its previous, much more ambitious projection of increasing rice
production by six percent this year from last year's level.
Minister Sjarifudin said yesterday that the previous
projection took into account the four percent decline in last
year's rice production, as well as maintaining the expectation of
a minimum annual increase of 2.1 percent.
"The government aims to increase rice production by an average
of 2.1 percent annually in the coming five years. This target has
taken into account factors like population growth, changes in
incomes and rice consumption," the minister said.
Weather
Previous news reports said that recent floods have threatened
almost 30,000 hectares of food crops in Java and Sumatra. And the
National Space and Aviation Agency predicted recently that the
country is likely to experience a major drought later this year.
Minister Radinal confirmed yesterday that 26,000 hectares of
rice fields have been damaged by the floods.
Sjarifudin also revealed that there has also been a 2.5 month
delay in this year's harvest.
Ginandjar assured, however, that Indonesia's rice self-
sufficiency is still safe despite the now modest projection for
this year's rice production.
"We are still maintaining self-sufficiency because the amount
of per capita rice production is still higher than the per capita
consumption. This year we aim to produce 160 kilograms of rice
per capita, more than enough to meet the per capita consumption
of 132 kilograms," he said.
Sjarifudin added that in absolute figures Indonesia will
produce around 46 million tons of rice this year.
The chairman of the National Logistics Agency (Bulog) said
earlier this week that the agency currently holds around 800,000
tons of rice stocks.
Emergency measures
Ginandjar also announced yesterday that the government plans
to take "emergency measures" soon to boost rice production in
order to meet any increases in demand.
"The budget for the measures will fall somewhere between Rp
150 billion (US$68.18 million) and Rp 200 billion. It will come
from funds already allocated in the current budget," said the
minister, who also heads the National Development Planning Board.
Sjarifudin said the government plans to repair and upgrade the
country's village irrigation systems, to intensify rice
production, and to create new rice fields.
"In the first stage, we aim to fix around 150,000 hectares --
out of the 1.3 million hectares -- of village irrigation systems
in the country. We also have set a target to create around 90,000
hectares of new rice fields this fiscal year," he said. (hdj)