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RI looks for Chinese help to fix domestic rice farming shortfall
Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Pandjaitan said Indonesia had invited China to share its technology and know-how in the development of rice farming in Central Kalimantan.
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A farmer scatters dry fertilizer on a paddy field on March 1, 2024, in Sawit, Boyolali, Central Java. (Antara/Aloysius Jarot Nugroho)
T
he government says it is looking for Chinese expertise and technology in rice cultivation in another attempt to achieve self-sufficiency in the pivotal agricultural commodity.
“We asked [China] to share their rice technology, [as] they have been very successful in achieving [food] self-sufficiency, and they are willing,” Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Pandjaitan said through his Instagram account on Friday.
The senior minister added that the plan was to collaborate on developing rice farming in Central Kalimantan, where 1 million hectares of land could be utilized for rice farming in collaboration with China.
Statistics Indonesia (BPS) data shows that Indonesia imported 3.06 million tonnes of rice in 2023, marking a 613.61 percent increase over 2022 and making the country the world’s largest rice importer.
This year, the government plans to import another 2.5 million tonnes to maintain its reserve levels.
Luhut said that the project with China was hoped to begin around October 2024 and that the government was currently looking for a local partner to pursue the initiative.
Read also: Jokowi cannot promise rice aid will last until December
