The BLP, which is currently being prepared by the government, is a result of the transformation of the fertilizer subsidy policy.
During a discussion here on Wednesday, Yulaswati informed that the government will test the mechanism next year.
She said that the BLP program is a part of the transformation to increase national food security.
The transformation of the subsidy will mainly be carried out in terms of distribution: through the BLP program, it will be provided directly to farmers.
"In essence, we want to reform the subsidy from (being distributed to) producers to individuals," she explained.
There will be several changes in the distribution of the fertilizer subsidy. First, under the new policy, farmers will get direct cash transfers, unlike earlier, when the assistance provided was in the form of a goods subsidy.
Second, under the BLP program, beneficiaries will be individual-based, while in the previous fertilizer subsidy policy, beneficiaries were group-based.
"We are using a data source that has been developed, carried out by Statistics Indonesia (BPS), and managed by the ministry, namely Regsosek (Socioeconomic Registration data)," she informed.
Third, under the new policy, the need for fertilizer subsidies will be adjusted to the condition of land and the needs of plants.
Fourth, while the government emphasized assistance based on the volume of subsidized fertilizers previously, in the BLP policy, the emphasis will be on production results, farmer productivity, and agricultural sustainability.
She expressed the hope that with the transformation of the subsidy policy, the distribution of government assistance would become more efficient and boost the productivity of farmers through flexibility in the purchase of fertilizers.
The BLP program is also expected to increase the financial inclusion of small-scale farmers through better targeting and the transformation of payment to electronic methods.
The BLP program is planned to be tested in East Belitung and Belitung districts of Bangka Belitung Islands in 2025.
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Translator: Bayu Saputra, Raka Adji
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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