A lack of coordination among the institutes has so far posed a hindrance. Therefore, a food ministry needs to be set up to coordinate all decisions related to food production and distribution in Indonesia,"Padang, W Sumatra (ANTARA News) - The Indonesian Farmers Association (SPI) urged the government on Monday to form a food ministry soon as part of efforts to resolve national food problems.
The formation of the food ministry would ensure that the production and distribution of food in the country would be coordinated properly, the chief of the association`s branch in West Sumatra, Sukardi Bendang said here on Monday.
He made the statement at a discussion marking National Farmer Day at the secretariat of the Independent Journalists Alliance (AJI) here.
Currently, national food problems were being handled by many ministries, including the forestry ministry, the trade ministry, the agriculture ministry, the public works ministry and the national logistics board (Bulog) as a center for accommodating and distributing domestic food production, he said.
"A lack of coordination among the institutes has so far posed a hindrance. Therefore, a food ministry needs to be set up to coordinate all decisions related to food production and distribution in Indonesia," he said.
The food ministry could also be assigned to pay special attention to the poor in various parts of the country as well as to the people who had no access to food, he said.(*)
Editor: Aditia Maruli Radja
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