Sigi Regency records dozens of hectares of rice fields affected by drought
The Sigi Regency Government in Central Sulawesi has recorded dozens of hectares of rice paddy land in the area affected by drought due to extreme hot weather resulting from the El Niño phenomenon.
“Based on reports, so far data has only come in from Sigi Kota District, namely 30 to 40 hectares of community rice paddy land affected by drought,” said Afit Lamakarate, Head of the Sigi Food Crops, Horticulture and Plantation Office, in Bora on Monday.
He explained that most of the worst-affected agricultural areas are generally outside the coverage of the Gumbasa Irrigation system and depend on supporting rivers without technical irrigation systems, such as the Wuno River.
“Indeed, the water discharge of the Wuno River has experienced a significant decline, threatening the potential for crop failure on rice plants in several areas such as Oloboju Village, Bora Village, and parts of Watunonju Village,” he said.
According to him, another cause of the potential crop failure is that the majority of soil in Sigi has alluvial characteristics.
“This soil character very easily absorbs water when it rains, but on the other hand, water evaporates and seeps away very quickly when extreme heat occurs as it does now,” he stated.
He said that to anticipate and address the widening impact of the drought, piped irrigation will be built in Sigi, proposed through the Ministry of Agriculture and the Sulawesi III River Basin Agency.
“Around 80 points have already been approved for piped irrigation construction this year and will continue in 2027,” he said.
Afit also asked all field officers, including the Agricultural Extension Centres in each area, to immediately report and update data on the extent of agricultural land affected by the drought.
“For the other 15 sub-districts, detailed reports have not yet come in, and through this data update we can ensure that handling measures are properly targeted,” he said.
It is known that the agricultural land area and the validated Standard Paddy Field Area in Sigi as of December 2024 reached 15,280 hectares.