Sumedang Agriculture Office Distributes 16 Tractors to Boost Food Production

The Sumedang Regency Agriculture and Food Security Office (DPKP) in West Java has distributed 16 tractor units to farmer groups as part of an agricultural tools and machinery (alsintan) assistance programme funded by the 2025 Regional Indicative Budget Ceiling (PIK) to boost agricultural sector productivity. Sumedang DPKP Head Tono Suhartono said on Thursday that the assistance is the initial phase of alsintan distribution, which will continue in stages to other priority areas. “On this occasion, we handed over hand tractor assistance to several villages, with funds sourced from the 2025 Regional Indicative Budget Ceiling. Currently, 16 tractor units have been distributed,” he said. He explained that alsintan assistance is prioritised for food barn areas and rice production centres as part of the local government’s efforts to strengthen the agricultural sector across all 26 sub-districts in Sumedang Regency. The distribution of these 16 hand tractors is also part of strengthening agricultural mechanisation in Sumedang, following a previous distribution of 30 alsintan units in Ujungjaya Sub-district, consisting of 7 combine harvesters, 10 rice transplanters, 9 multifunctional sprayers, and 4 water pumps to support increased farmer productivity. According to him, the use of agricultural mechanisation through hand tractors is expected to accelerate the land cultivation process, enabling farmers to improve work efficiency while boosting agricultural output. “Hopefully, these tractors will serve as the local government’s effort to increase agricultural production and ultimately improve the welfare of farmers in the Sumedang Regency area. We hope this assistance is beneficial,” he said. Tono added that the local government will continue distributing alsintan assistance in stages to farmer groups in other areas that have not yet received aid, according to regional priority scales. In addition to distributing alsintan, the Agriculture and Food Security Office is also continuously strengthening supporting agricultural infrastructure, particularly irrigation networks, to support increased land productivity in various agricultural areas. “Hopefully, agricultural productivity can continue to be improved, including through enhancing irrigation networks across the 26 sub-districts in Sumedang Regency,” he said. He expressed hope that the combination of agricultural mechanisation assistance and improved irrigation infrastructure can strengthen regional food security and improve farmer welfare through more optimal harvests. Sumedang Regency has a total area of approximately 150,000 hectares, dominated by forestry and agriculture. According to local government data, agricultural land in the region covers around 31,166 hectares of rice fields and 4,500 hectares of plantation land spread across 26 sub-districts. Areas such as Buahdua, Conggeang, Darmaraja, and Situraja serve as the main rice production centres. Meanwhile, horticultural commodities such as gedong gincu mangoes are widely cultivated in areas like Tomo and Jatigede.