At the G20 agriculture sector online discussion on food resiliency and sustainable farming on Thursday, he noted that aging farmers and fishermen in Indonesia posed a challenge to conduct regeneration during the medium- to long-term period.
Aging agricultural human resources had limited access to information, market potential, and funding, he pointed out.
Currently, banking credit financing data for Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) does not reach 20 percent, he highlighted.
From this figure, agriculture MSMEs access finance less than MSMEs in the trade sector, he noted.
Meanwhile, agriculture infrastructure should continue to be bolstered for the development of Indonesian agriculture to be transformed into modern agriculture, Indarto emphasized.
"The current infrastructure problem causes issues in improving productivity," he elaborated.
Related news: Technology, innovation crucial for agricultural development in 2022
Meanwhile, the policy analyst pointed to existing issues in terms of village road, energy, and communication infrastructure.
"Hence, technological adoption could become one of our collective efforts to handle these challenges," he remarked.
In addition, the small business scale in the farming sector and high production costs are still challenges that must be addressed immediately.
Indarto also underlined the importance of developing a better business partnership between farmers, fishermen, and related parties.
During the event, Center of Indonesian Policy Studies' (CIPS') Head Researcher Felippa Amanta called for bolstering the Indonesian agriculture sector's supply chain.
This will provide additional value to agriculture products and prevent food loss.
"What we tend to forget when it comes to food and farming is that the process does not end with harvest. There is an activity afterwards that is an inseparable component of the food system," she noted.
Related news: Sustainable food system development key in agricultural improvement
Related news: President pushes large-scale agricultural development
Translator: Aditya Ramadhan, Fadhli Ruhman
Editor: Suharto
Copyright © ANTARA 2022
