"Among the exhibited commodities are coffee, mangosteens, potatoes, organic rice, bananas, garlic, white pepper, and shallots," manager of the ministry's Upland Program, Farakka Sari, stated in Padang, West Sumatra, on Thursday.
Sari remarked that the commodity exhibition was held in order to support the farmers assisted by the Upland Program in the hopes of enabling them to boost their harvest yields and opening market opportunities.
"This is in line with the program's goal to empower farmers from upstream to downstream," Sari noted.
In addition to the featured commodities, the ministry provides information on a way to boost the farmers' income by promoting the adoption of an integrated farming system. For instance, the ministry promotes the integration between coffee farming and goat and sheep farming activities.
Sari explained that the program is an integrated program organized by the ministry's Directorate General of Agricultural Infrastructure and Facilities (PSP), with the goal of boosting farmers' income.
The program's integrated nature refers to its mechanism in supporting farmers that starts from the upstream production sector to the post-harvest activity to ensure an increase in the value chain of agricultural products.
In general, the program is financed by the government, through the Agriculture Ministry's budget, with support from the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
The program has been implemented in 13 districts: Banjarnegara, Lebak, Garut, Tasikmalaya, Subang, South Minahasa, Gorontalo, East Lombok, Purbalingga, Malang, Magelang, Sumenep, and Sumbawa.
Furthermore, the ministry has taken some other measures under the program, such as constructing farm roads, repairing irrigation canals, as well as providing adequate machines and equipment to support production and post-harvest activities.
"Upland is also supporting farmers' capacity-building activities, including by conducting coaching and adaptive research, and also establishing farmers' corporate institutions," Sari pointed out.
Meanwhile, the ministry's PSP Director General, Ali Jamil, expressed hope that the XVI Penas Tani would serve as a forum for learning, coaching, exchanging information, as well as sharing experiences and also developing partnerships among parties.
He also expects that the event will spark enthusiasm, responsibility, and self-reliance of participants as the main actors in the efforts to develop the country's agriculture, fishery, and forestry sectors.
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Translator: Muhammad Zulfikar, Tegar Nurfitra
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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