South Papua's largest food development area reaches 102,000 ha: Bulog

Jayapura, Papua (ANTARA) - The State-owned Logistics Agency, Bulog, said that South Papua currently holds the largest food development area in Papua, with a total development area of approximately 102,000 hectares.

Bulog President Director Ahmad Rizal Ramdhani on Sunday conveyed that the area is projected to be set as Indonesia's future food barn, integrated from upstream to downstream.

"The food development area in South Papua consists of 48,934 hectares of rice paddy fields and 53,499 hectares of land optimization spread across Merauke and the surrounding area," he explained.

According to him, South Papua is now a primary focus for national food development, prepared to support sustainable national rice production.

Ahmad addressed that the government is accelerating the development of supporting agricultural infrastructure, including the provision of high-quality seeds, agricultural machinery, rice milling units (RMUs), dryers, storage warehouses, and other post-harvest facilities.

"Agricultural modernization in Merauke has shown significant results, with grain productivity increasing from around 3 tons per hectare to around 4-7 tons per hectare," he continued.

The agriculture mechanization has increased Merauke's cropping index to two plantings per year, surpassing the national average of 1.6 to 1.7 times, and is heading for three crops per year.

Ahmad noted that the increase has not only boosted production but also directly improved farmers' welfare, with incomes in the development area rising by as much as 300 percent.

"The area's strong potential is also reflected in farmers' enthusiasm, with requests to develop an additional 2,000 hectares of rice fields to further expand food production," he remarked.

On Saturday, South Papua also received agricultural assistance worth Rp1.3 trillion (US$70 million) from the Agriculture Ministry to strengthen agricultural modernization, increase productivity, and improve farmers' welfare.

The aid package includes 122 combine harvesters, 810 two-wheeled tractors, 477 four-wheeled tractors, 12 agricultural drones, and 1,188 water pumps to support cultivation.

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Translator: Qadri Pratiwi, Resinta Sulistiyandari

Editor: Azis Kurmala

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