Regional governments need to control the availability of the supply to prevent the prices of staple commodities from soaring.Manokwari (ANTARA) -
Deputy Minister of Agriculture Harvik Hasnul Qolby inspected the supply of food commodities at Wosi Market, Manokwari District, West Papua Province, on Saturday.
During his visit to the market, Qolby emphasized the need to ensure the sufficiency of food supply to anticipate an increase in demand, especially before and during the Christmas and New Year holidays.
"Regional governments need to control the availability of the supply to prevent the prices of staple commodities from soaring," he said.
The deputy minister then urged provincial, municipal, and district governments in West Papua to work together to hold cheap market operations to help maintain people's purchasing power.
He noted that people’s purchasing power is a key factor in protecting national and regional economies from stagflation arising from global economic uncertainty.
"Indeed, fluctuations in the prices of basic necessities frequently happen ahead of holidays. However, it is necessary to intervene to ensure that the fluctuations remain at an insignificant level," he added.
Based on his inspection, Qolby said that the stocks of several basic commodities, such as chili, rice, tomatoes, and vegetables, are still on par with consumer demand at the market.
Still, he asked the Manokwari district government to continue to pay special attention to the distribution chains of basic necessities. He also advised the government to not send commodities whose stocks are not abundant in the district to other regions.
Qolby informed that the Agriculture Ministry has been striving to execute its plan of building a livestock feed factory in Manokwari to keep the prices of chicken meat and beef stable.
"In Manokwari, the problem is a decline in the population of cattle because they are often sent to Sorong. At the same time, merchants are still offering them at normal prices (despite the decreasing stocks)," he pointed out.
He further revealed that his side will initiate a partnership program by targeting farmers’ groups to boost the population of cattle in the district.
Qolby said that a partnership scheme would be more effective than others, adding that the government would initially gather data on potential cattle farmers to ensure the program is on target.
"In addition to suppressing prices, this (program) is expected to provide economic benefits to farming communities," he said.
Related news: Biak Numfor receives five tons of rice reserves to deal with stunting
Related news: Rice stocks for Papua, W Papua at 53,284 tons: Bulog
During his visit to the market, Qolby emphasized the need to ensure the sufficiency of food supply to anticipate an increase in demand, especially before and during the Christmas and New Year holidays.
"Regional governments need to control the availability of the supply to prevent the prices of staple commodities from soaring," he said.
The deputy minister then urged provincial, municipal, and district governments in West Papua to work together to hold cheap market operations to help maintain people's purchasing power.
He noted that people’s purchasing power is a key factor in protecting national and regional economies from stagflation arising from global economic uncertainty.
"Indeed, fluctuations in the prices of basic necessities frequently happen ahead of holidays. However, it is necessary to intervene to ensure that the fluctuations remain at an insignificant level," he added.
Based on his inspection, Qolby said that the stocks of several basic commodities, such as chili, rice, tomatoes, and vegetables, are still on par with consumer demand at the market.
Still, he asked the Manokwari district government to continue to pay special attention to the distribution chains of basic necessities. He also advised the government to not send commodities whose stocks are not abundant in the district to other regions.
Qolby informed that the Agriculture Ministry has been striving to execute its plan of building a livestock feed factory in Manokwari to keep the prices of chicken meat and beef stable.
"In Manokwari, the problem is a decline in the population of cattle because they are often sent to Sorong. At the same time, merchants are still offering them at normal prices (despite the decreasing stocks)," he pointed out.
He further revealed that his side will initiate a partnership program by targeting farmers’ groups to boost the population of cattle in the district.
Qolby said that a partnership scheme would be more effective than others, adding that the government would initially gather data on potential cattle farmers to ensure the program is on target.
"In addition to suppressing prices, this (program) is expected to provide economic benefits to farming communities," he said.
Related news: Biak Numfor receives five tons of rice reserves to deal with stunting
Related news: Rice stocks for Papua, W Papua at 53,284 tons: Bulog
Translator: Fransiskus S, Tegar Nurfitra
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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