"Right now, it (the distribution) is only 82 percent (complete). At the beginning of May, it should be 100 percent," PT Pos Indonesia's (Persero) Courier and Logistics Business Director Siti Choiriana told ANTARA in Jakarta on Tuesday.
She said that the distribution of 10-kilogram rice aid ran into a number of challenges. First, access to certain areas required special handling, both in terms of transportation and human resources for escorts.
"For the outermost, underdeveloped, and frontier (3T) areas, it needs special specs. There are some that we even fly by air for certain areas; some are by boat," she informed.
Then, a number of logistics vehicles stopped operating during the return flow of Eid. In addition, there was a discrepancy in the data because some prospective recipients died or were not available at the distribution site since they had gone home.
"The obstacle (invalidity of recipient data) means we have to propose a replacement with an existing mechanism. Coordinating with the local service village head, the village head proposes to the ministry. Once approved, redistribution becomes a double effort. What should be finished, stored first, wait for the replacement to be approved, and redistributed?" she explained.
The government, through the National Food Agency (Bapanas), has given PT Pos Indonesia the mandate to distribute rice to 21.3 million KMPs in 38 provinces by optimizing Bulog rice stocks in 26 regional offices across Indonesia.
Based on data from the Bapanas, as of May 2, 2023, 179 thousand metric tons of food aid has been distributed. More than 50 percent of the provinces, or as many as 20 provinces, have distributed 90–100 percent of the aid.
The provinces that have distributed 100 percent of the aid are Aceh, Riau Islands, Jambi, Bangka Belitung, South Sumatra, Bengkulu, Lampung, DKI Jakarta, West Sulawesi, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), Papua, West Papua, Southwest Papua, and South Papua.
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Translator: Azis Kurmala
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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