Zulhas Receives New Role from Prabowo to Prevent Indonesia's Rice Fields from 'Disappearing'

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - President Prabowo Subianto has appointed Coordinating Minister for Food Affairs Zulkifli Hasan as Chair of the Integrated Team for Controlling the Conversion of Rice Paddy Land. This is stipulated in Presidential Regulation No. 4 of 2026 on the Control of Rice Paddy Land Conversion, which was promulgated on 4 February 2026. “That the conversion of food land, particularly rice paddies, into non-rice paddy uses is increasing and has the potential to threaten national food security, thus necessitating control over the conversion of rice paddy land,” quoting from the Considerations section, on Monday, 4 May 2026. The regulation was established to accelerate the determination of maps of protected rice paddy land in order to meet and maintain the availability of rice paddy land to support national food needs. Additionally, it aims to control the rapid conversion of rice paddy land, empower farmers to prevent conversion, and provide data and information on rice paddy land for the designation of sustainable food agricultural land. One of the scopes of this policy is the establishment of the Integrated Team for Controlling the Conversion of Rice Paddy Land. The team is tasked with coordinating the implementation of verification for determining maps of protected rice paddy land, synchronising verification results for rice paddy land, proposing the determination of maps of protected rice paddy land, determining incentives for local governments and communities, and monitoring and evaluation. The team is led by: a. Chair: Coordinating Minister for Food Affairs; b. Deputy Chair: Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development; c. Daily Chair: Minister of Agrarian Affairs and Spatial Planning/Head of the National Land Agency. The regulation also explains the technicalities of determining maps of protected rice paddy land, starting from verification, synchronisation, and implementation of determining protected rice paddy land. This policy also regulates the provision of incentives for protected rice paddy land to local governments. (1) The provision of incentives by the Central Government to Local Governments as referred to in Article 18 is carried out if the Local Government: a. designates protected rice paddy land that will become sustainable food agricultural land in the spatial planning plan of more than 87% of the total base rice paddy land area in its region; and b. does not request recommendations for land use changes on protected rice paddy land until the designation of sustainable food agricultural land areas. (2) Incentives for Local Governments as referred to in paragraph (1) consist of: a. provision of infrastructure supporting agriculture; b. funding support in the agricultural sector; and/or c. other forms in accordance with statutory provisions.