The rehabilitation program is being launched simultaneously in Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra, the agriculture minister’s special staffer for agricultural policy, Sam Herodian, said in Solok district, West Sumatra, on Thursday.
"This rice field rehabilitation is being carried out simultaneously in three disaster-affected provinces — Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra,” Herodian said.
In West Sumatra alone, authorities recorded 6,451 hectares of damaged rice fields spread across 14 districts and cities, according to agriculture ministry data.
Of that total, about 3,624 hectares were classified as lightly to moderately damaged, while more than 2,000 hectares suffered severe damage, Herodian said.
He said local governments must complete administrative requirements before rehabilitation begins, after which recovery work will proceed simultaneously in affected districts.
The rehabilitation will start with clearing flood debris such as sand, rocks, and wood left by flash floods in late November 2025, with priority given to lightly and moderately damaged fields.
Work on those areas is scheduled for January to February 2026, while the ministry has committed to restoring all disaster-affected rice fields, he said.
The central government is also accelerating river normalization through dredging, as irrigation flows are critical for rice production in the affected areas.
The Agriculture Ministry, working with the Public Works Ministry, has deployed excavators since the disaster to remove sediment from rivers, while also preparing seeds, farm machinery, and fertilizer assistance for farmers in Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra.
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Translator: Muhammad Zulfikar, Martha Herlinawati Simanjuntak
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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