"I intend to develop an Orchid Village (for orchid cultivation). The villages will not be in Java but outside Java region. Underdeveloped regions can serve as a pilot for orchid development," Iskandar noted in his statement received here on Monday.
The minister earlier attended a discussion with orchid cultivators and officiated Arjuno Park in Gunungrejo Village, Malang District, East Java.
He noted that villages in underdeveloped regions should utilise economic opportunities arising from the cultivation of orchids, as it is a tropical plant that can grow well through proper cultivation in villages.
"A person with a hobby in plant cultivation and (willingness to) optimise his or her capacity, coupled with a good market, will positively affect economic development," the minister stated.
Orchid cultivation has a high export value, he remarked while adding that in 2020, Indonesia had exported 11.7 million orchids, of which 4.2 million were produced in East Java alone.
"Orchid Villages can be a (medium for) breakthrough in the development of new orchid variants in underdeveloped regions to increase the economic value," Iskandar remarked.
The minister affirmed that residents of underdeveloped villages could also utilise village funds to support training in orchid cultivation and business development and marketing.
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"Let us utilise the potentials of orchid for business. The village fund can also be utilised by farmers to study the potentials of orchid cultivation," he affirmed.
Meanwhile, East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa stated that the provincial authority will apply a formal measure along with the central government to assist orchid cultivation and the industry in the region.
"We also urge the minister to assist us by applying a cross-ministerial informal approach to realise orchid exports," the governor stated.
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Translator: Zubi Mahrofi, Nabil Ihsan
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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