"We once launched 10 thousand hectares of rice fields and now, the production has reached six tons per hectare, so it is successful," Sulaiman said during a working visit to Merauke district here on Tuesday.
According to him, the newly launched 500 thousand hectares of agricultural land is part of the one million hectare target. "We want to make a future granary," he said.
During the visit, he launched new farming fields developed from untapped land in South Papua.
The activity was carried out on the first day of work after the long Eid holiday. He asked local governments and farmers to utilize the farming land.
"This existing land is ready and very good, and its potential is extraordinary," he said.
The agriculture potential in South Papua is very large in meeting domestic needs in eastern Indonesia, he added.
Sulaiman informed that currently, almost all countries in the world are experiencing long El Nino, which has led to a decline in food production.
"Here the potential is amazing and the water is abundant. Now, we make this our strength for the harvest," he said.
Meanwhile, Merauke district head Romanus Mbaraka said that his district is known as a facade for trade and transportation in Eastern Indonesia, the Pacific, and the Melanesian sub-region.
Merauke in South Papua alone has potential agricultural land spanning 1.2 million hectares.
"South Papua province consists of four districts, 74 districts, 13 urban villages, and 674 villages. Merauke, with a total area of 127,280.69 square kilometers (and) has a population of 243,722," Mbaraka added.
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Translator: M Harianto, Kenzu
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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