"Please, you can really design the plan and strategy. What I want is labor-intensive downstreaming," he stated during the opening of the XXII Indonesian Economists Association Congress and the 2024 National Seminar in Surakarta, Central Java, Thursday.
President Jokowi emphasized the importance of good management in developing derivative products from seaweed, such as organic fertilizers, cosmetics, and also aircraft fuel.
He drew attention to the fact that such potential had yet to be managed well.
Jokowi pointed out that Indonesia, with a coastline spanning 81 thousand kilometers, has vast potential that had yet to be utilized.
"We know that Indonesia has the second-longest coastline in the world, 81 thousand kilometers. This is a great potential, but it must be designed and planned, and the right strategy must be made, so that the results can be found," he remarked.
On that occasion, the president noted that national coffee production reached only around 2.5 tons per hectare, far behind Vietnam, producing eight to nine tons per hectare.
"I checked to see how many hectares of coffee (plantation) do we have? It is 1.2 million hectares. I checked in the field to see how much is our production per hectare? Only around 2 tons per hectare," he remarked.
He further expressed concern over Indonesia's position in the coffee farming sector at a time when market demand was high.
The head of state pointed to weakness in research and development as the major factor behind Indonesian coffee not being able to compete in the global market.
Hence, he emphasized the need to strengthen research and development so Indonesia could increase the production and quality of its leading commodities, such as coffee.
He also called for increased research and development in the cocoa industry, which also has huge potential.
"We have 1.4 million hectares of cocoa plantation. The industry is there, but the raw materials for cocoa are lacking, so we import, which is another big mistake," he stated.
With the application of the right strategy, the president affirmed that the agriculture and fisheries sectors were expected to provide significant added value to the national economy.
"There are still many other (commodities), such as pepper and patchouli, whose derivatives will provide very big added value," he remarked.
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Translator: Andi Firdaus, Yashinta Difa
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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