Mr President has instructed us to take necessary measures to rev up consumption sugar (procurement), which means that we need to ready some 850 tons of sugarJakarta (ANTARA) - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) ordered relevant officials, especially Agriculture Minister Syahrul Yasin Limpo and State-owned Enterprises Minister Erick Thohir, to increase national sugar production to fulfil the country's requirements.
"I have received the instruction with other ministers, particularly the SOEs minister, to properly ready sugarcane ratoon maintenance and clean-up, which means that intensification and expansion of lands must be performed concurrently," Limpo stated at the Presidential Palace here, Wednesday.
The minister remarked that while the national demand for consumption sugar reached 3.2 million tons and industrial sugar at 4.1 million tons, the national sugar production was only recorded at 2.35 million tons.
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The disproportionate national sugar production and demand caused a discrepancy of around 850 thousand tons, he pointed out.
"Mr President has instructed us to take necessary measures to rev up consumption sugar (procurement), which means that we need to ready some 850 tons of sugar," Limpo remarked.
While the government will enhance efforts to gradually supply more industrial sugar, the minister is committed to taking measures to maintain the sugar stocks to fulfil industrial needs.
He remarked that global economic disruption that causes other countries to restrict their export quota is causal to fluctuations in the national sugar supply.
"Hence, Mr President expected that joint steps between the agriculture, SOEs, trade, and industry ministries can be conceived promptly to ready ourselves with various events and, at least, to prepare our national sugar needs," Limpo remarked.
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The president will strictly monitor issues on food stocks and availability, particularly sugar, which the president stresses, as the commodity influences the national inflation level, he stated.
As of June 2022, Indonesia's inflation level had reached 4.35 percent on a year-on-year basis.
"As this is on an item-per-item basis and by particular variety or commodity, deliberation and decision-making process will be conducted in detail," the minister added.
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Translator: Indra Arief P, Nabil Ihsan
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
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