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Garlic, onion import licenses temporarily removed to stabilize soaring prices
Importers will no longer need import permit letter (SPI) from the Trade Ministry and import recommendations for horticulture products (RIPH) from the Agriculture Ministry to import garlic and onion.
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A worker inspects garlic stock in a warehouse belonging to the State Logistics Agency (Bulog) in North Jakarta. (JP/Stefani Ribka)
T
he government has temporarily removed licensing requirements for imports of garlic and bawang Bombay (brown onion) to increase supply and suppress the soaring prices of the two commodities amid a shortage of supply in the domestic market.
Trade Minister Agus Suparmanto said that importers would no longer need import permit letters (SPI) from the Trade Ministry and import recommendations for horticulture products (RIPH) from the Agriculture Ministry. The new policy will be effective from March 19 until May 31.
With the new policy, Agus expected new garlic and onion imports to enter Indonesia within one to two weeks.
"This [decision] aims to relax import policies like RIPH and other [permits] that take a long time to process. Given the current situation, we are simplifying import processes, particularly for commodities with unstable prices," Agus said in a teleconference in Jakarta on Monday.
The new import policy answers businesspeople's plea to simplify import procedures for basic needs to ensure sufficient supplies, especially during Ramadan and the Idul Fitri holidays when demand for food increases sharply. Ramadan is expected to begin on April 24.
Normally, importers are required to obtain a RIPH from the Agriculture Ministry and then wait for an SPI from the Trade Ministry to determine the final volume they may import into Indonesia. Bureaucratic processes have long caused delays in imports, resulting in scarcity and driving up prices.
In addition, the tightening of import procedures to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus from aboard has also partly caused shortages of certain commodities such as sugar and garlic, leading to soaring prices.
