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Bullish on nuclear tech, Prabowo sees uses beyond energy supply
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President Prabowo Subianto addresses the sixth Democratic Party Congress at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Jakarta on Feb. 25, 2025. (BPMI Setpres/Muchlis Jr)
P
resident Prabowo Subianto has praised nuclear power as the “cleanest energy source” and is also banking on the technology in the areas of health care and agriculture.
Indonesia needed solutions to address numerous challenges, Prabowo said in a speech at the closing ceremony of the Democratic Party’s sixth national congress, adding that the rise of a nation took decades, not five or 10 years.
“We are built on top, just like a building is built on a foundation, on top of a solid floor, solid pillars. We are fortunate. Each president has different roles because of changing times,” Prabowo said in Jakarta on Tuesday during the ceremony broadcast live on YouTube.
He went on to say that Indonesia’s first president, Sukarno, had formed an atomic energy agency based on a vision that the energy source, which was then mainly used to produce explosive material for nuclear weapons, could also be used to improve the health and agricultural sectors.
“He [Sukarno] thought nuclear was not only used for weaponry but also for health, rice seeds and especially for energy. Turns out, nuclear is one of the cleanest new energy [sources],” the President said, without elaborating.
Read also: RI pursues nuclear path to meet demand for low-carbon power
Nuclear technology can be used in crop breeding to produce enhanced varieties that are more resilient to climate change, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), which could help countries secure their food and nutrition needs.
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