Tito Pledges to Oversee Recovery of Agricultural Land and Shrimp Ponds Following Sumatra Disaster

The Minister of Home Affairs (Mendagri) and Chair of the Task Force for Acceleration of Rehabilitation and Reconstruction (PRR) Following the Sumatra Disaster, Muhammad Tito Karnavian, has pledged to oversee the acceleration of recovery efforts for agricultural land and shrimp ponds affected by disasters at the end of last year.

Tito stated that he has coordinated with several ministries including the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (KKP) and the Ministry of Agriculture (Kementan) to expedite handling so that damaged land can return to productivity. According to him, the government has already conducted a survey of the condition of affected agricultural land and ponds as a foundation for intervention.

“And this will be implemented after Eid, they will immediately work to help ponds that are covered in mud to be revived,” Tito said following a Coordination Meeting on Presidential Strategic Programmes at the Ministry of Defence (Kemenhan) office in Jakarta on Tuesday (17 March).

Based on survey results, land that can still be productive will immediately be optimised for replanting. Meanwhile, land whose condition is covered with material such as rocks and wood will require a cleaning process first.

“That must be cleaned. It’s what we call the new rice field programme. Although this is an old field, the budget is allocated as a new rice field programme,” Tito added.

Tito stated that the duration of work depends on the extent of the affected area. He considers that handling agricultural land will be a significant task requiring cross-sector coordination.

To that end, he reiterated his commitment to personally oversee the process to ensure it proceeds according to plan.

“I will certainly oversee it,” Tito concluded.