The Ministry Of PUPR Builds Water Infrastructure To Support Food Production Increase

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) is trying to increase food production this year by increasing the planting area by 395,000 hectares by completing the construction of various water resource infrastructures by 2023.

"We are contributing to increasing the area of planting from the results of the development that we have carried out. The total increase in the area of planting, meaning that the intensification of our development results is around 395,000 hectares," said PUPR Minister Basuki Hadimuljono in Jakarta, Monday quoted from Antara, Tuesday 2 April.

Basuki said the addition of 395,000 hectares included an increase in the planting area of around 63,000 hectares out of a total functional of 233,000 hectares thanks to the construction of irrigation and the operation of 36 new dams.

According to him, these efforts can increase the planting intensity (IP) by 27 percent.

He said that his party had also rehabilitated an irrigation network of 426,200 hectares which could increase the planting area by about 255,000 hectares or 60 percent of the rehabilitation irrigation network area.

In addition, the Ministry of PUPR has built a groundwater irrigation network for 3,676 groundwater wells that can add about 75,000 hectares of planting area.

"Regions that previously had no wells and no plants, with wells, so there is water and can add 75,000 hectares of planting area," said Basuki.

In addition, he said that his party had built four irrigation reservoirs that could add 471 hectares of planting area.

"So, this is our contribution in increasing the planting area. If it is only 1 hectare, it can produce 5 tons. With 300,000 or 400,000 hectares of planting area, it means that it can increase production by at least 1.5 million or 2 million tons," he said.