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Jokowi to import another 1.5 million tonnes of rice to brace for El Niño
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo said Indonesia needed to import another 1.5 million tonnes of rice to anticipate a dwindling harvest due to the El Niño weather phenomenon, on top of the prevailing 2 million tonnes procured earlier this year.
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Maintaining grain: Workers unload rice imported from Thailand at Ujung Baru seaport in Medan Belawan, North Sumatra, on Sept. 6, 2023.
(Antara/Yudi)
P
resident Joko “Jokowi” Widodo said Indonesia needed to import another 1.5 million tonnes of rice to anticipate a poor harvest due to the El Niño weather phenomenon.
The import will be on top of the 2 million tonnes of rice the government assigned the State Logistics Agency (Bulog) to procure from overseas to secure the government rice reserves (CBP) earlier this year.
“[El Niño] is a problem. That is why we need to add 1.5 million tonnes more to our reserves because El Niño will affect production, impacting the harvest,” said Jokowi in a press statement released on Sunday.
Jokowi made the decision after visiting a paddy field in Subang, West Java, during what is supposed to be this year’s second harvest season.
Bulog is expected to conclude the 2 million-tonne import in November, as quoted from Bisnis.
Read also: Domestic food supply safe despite declining rice output, govt says
Currently, the CBP stock stands at around 1.7 million tonnes and Jokowi said this was likely insufficient to weather the impact of El Niño on domestic rice production, hence the additional import was needed.
