The master plan for food estate development is crucial, so that we can see all aspects (of the project).Jakarta (ANTARA) - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has given instructions to his aides to chalk out a master plan for food estate development.
"The master plan for food estate development is crucial, so that we can see all aspects (of the project)," Jokowi remarked at the Merdeka Palace, Jakarta, during a virtual limited meeting on food estate development on Wednesday.
The master plan would be required for both the irrigated food estate spanning an area of 148 thousand hectares in Central Kalimantan for paddy field and the 622-thousand hectare non-irrigated estate for cassava, corn, and animal husbandry, he elaborated.
The government has readied two locations for food estate development in the provinces of Central Kalimantan and North Sumatra.
"In Central Kalimantan, the food estate will be established in Kapuas District and Pulang Pisau District. In North Sumatra, (the food estate) would be developed in Humbang Hasundutan District. These areas were prioritized, although we also planned to expand the plan after this," the president stated.
The government has begun preparations for establishment of food estates in other provinces, such as Papua, East Nusa Tenggara, and South Sumatra.
"This move is aimed at serving as a precautionary measure against a food crisis owing to the COVID-19 pandemic that the FAO (the UN Food and Agriculture Organization) has warned about in order to tackle climate change and more importantly to reduce our dependency on food imports. This is crucial," he remarked.
Despite progress in the project achieved on the field, the president highlighted some problems that necessitated prompt solutions.
"This is related to land ownership in the food estate area. However, I believe, and I urged the agrarian affairs and spatial planning minister to solve the problem soon since this concerns a vast area," he stated.
On July 9, 2020, President Jokowi, along with Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto and some other cabinet ministers, observed the location for development of the food estate in Kapuas District and Belanti Siam Village in Pulang Pisau District.
The districts have some 10 thousand hectares of potential area for food estate development. Related news: Implementation of food estate program is in progress: Jokowi
Related news: Indonesia's food estate in Humbang Hasundutan started this year
Translator: Sri Haryati
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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