Soeharto warns on fragility of food supply

JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto warned yesterday that without sound agricultural development, a combination of natural disasters and rapid development could complicate Indonesia's efforts to provide food to its people in the future.

"Our ability to maintain self-sufficiency in rice is highly susceptible to climate changes, dry seasons, floods and plant diseases," he said at the opening of a four-day Ministry of Agriculture workshop.

Soeharto pointed out that Indonesia also relies too heavily on rice produced in Java.

"This is happening despite the island's decreasing capability to withstand such high farming activities," he said.

Development activities in Java, such as the rapid development of infrastructure facilities in residential and industrial areas, also call for serious management, he said.

"In order to continue increasing the production level of rice and other kinds foodstuffs, we must dare to take such big steps as converting areas outside of Java into rice fields," he said, adding that efforts should be made to diversify the types of food produced in order to create self-sufficiency in foodstuffs other than rice.

The Central Bureau of Statistics said last month that the country's rice production last year fell by 3.2 percent to 46.6 million tons of unhusked rice -- the lowest level in 15 years -- from 48.2 million tons in 1993.

Indonesia, formerly the biggest rice importer in the world, became self-sufficient in rice in 1984. Until 1993, the country's rice exports exceeded imports, but since then it has had to rely partly on imports.

For this year's domestic procurements, the National Logistics Agency (Bulog) has signed contracts for the purchase of 1.04 million tons of rice from domestic suppliers.

Rice is the main staple for most of the Indonesian population, currently about 192 million.

New rice fields

Minister of Agriculture Sjarifudin Baharsjah, who spoke during the workshop, acknowledged yesterday that efforts were currently being conducted in Central Kalimantan -- which may be expanded to South Kalimantan -- to establish new rice fields.

Earlier this month, the government announced that in line with a presidential decree issued on June 5, one million hectares of swamp areas in Central Kalimantan will be converted into rice fields.

"I think that in addition to this area we can afford to add another 500,000 hectares of rice fields in these areas," Sjarifudin said yesterday.

Responding to questions from reporters, Sjarifudin said he was uncertain of the costs for the huge project. "But since the government is already set to do it, the funds will be there".

He added that the research and development board of his ministry has yet to choose the best technology for the planned rice fields, from which he hopes to obtain a harvest of at least three to 4.5 tons of rice per hectare.

In a hearing with members of the House of Representatives last month, Sjarifudin said the total harvest area for 1995 is estimated to reach 10.8 million hectares, yielding an average of 4.3 tons of unhusked rice per hectare or a total of 47.7 million tons.

From the 10.8 million hectares, 5.6 million hectares are located outside Java.

Last year, the total harvest area was 10.7 million hectares, 5.5 million hectares of which were located outside Java. The total area yielded an average of 4.3 tons of unhusked rice per hectare, or a total of 46.6 million tons.

Sjarifudin said the Ministry of Public Works is expected to create 75,000 hectares of new rice fields outside of Java this year.

Soeharto in his opening speech yesterday also stressed the need to develop agribusiness and agroindustry as a basis for modern agriculture.

He said that agribusinesses and agroindustries -- which include activities in crop and horticulture farming, plantations, fisheries and animal husbandry -- should have "strong roots" at the village level.

In the long run, he said, agriculture is expected to provide raw materials for the country's industries, thus linking the agricultural sector to the industrial field.

The workshop is being attended by some 300 participants, including Ministry of Agriculture officials from the regency to national levels, as well as executives from state enterprises overseen by the ministry and local administration officials from Indonesia's 27 provinces.(pwn)