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Govt to decide on rice importation by end of May: Minister
Coordinating Economic Minister Sofyan Djalil has said the government will provide certainty on its plan to import rice by the end of May or the beginning of June
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oordinating Economic Minister Sofyan Djalil has said the government will provide certainty on its plan to import rice by the end of May or the beginning of June.
'We will first evaluate the situation after assessing the absorption level of [State Logistics Agency] Bulog at the end of May and the beginning of June. The most important thing is that the [rice] stocks are not disrupted during the Idul Fitri celebration,' Sofyan said as quoted by Antara on Wednesday.
The minister was speaking after attending a coordination meeting to discuss food-supply availability ahead of the fasting month in Jakarta on Tuesday evening.
Sofyan said the government must carry out an evaluation on its rice importation plan, as harvest periods were still ongoing in several regions, while Bulog had prepared rice stocks for the next four months.
'Hopefully, Bulog will manage to absorb more supplies if rice production in the field is still adequate. But we can assure that for the next four months, the rice stock will be adequate, including for market operations. So it is only after we carry out an evaluation that we will decide on [rice importation],' he said.
Trade Minister Rachmat Gobel said Bulog's rice stock currently stood at around 1.2 million tons, which was was likely sufficient to meet consumer demand for Ramadan. Thus, rice importation will be a last resort. (ebf)(++++)
