JAKARTA - President Prabowo Subianto asked that the agricultural development program in Papua continue and be strengthened as the benefits are felt directly by the community, especially farmers.
The statement was made by Minister of Agriculture (Mentan) Andi Amran Sulaiman after meeting with President Prabowo at the Presidential Palace, Jakarta, Thursday, June 18.
According to Amran, the government continues to accelerate agricultural development in Papua through the largest budget support in history. In 2025 and 2026, the total agricultural budget support for Papua reached around Rp. 5.5 trillion.
Amran said, President Prabowo asked that agricultural assistance programs that have a direct impact on the community continue.
"We provide assistance there (Papua region) this year Rp. 3.2 trillion, last year Rp. 2 trillion, a total of Rp. 5.5 trillion more. We report to the president, he said this continues. This assistance, direct assistance to the people," said Amran.
The assistance includes grants for agricultural tools and machinery such as tractors, as well as support for the development of rice fields to increase food production capacity.
Amran said that the Ministry of Agriculture had previously received around 200 regional representatives consisting of governors, regents, heads of departments, and farmers from the Papua region. The meeting discussed the need for the development of the agricultural sector in the Papua region.
During the meeting, a number of regional governments also proposed adding a rice paddy printing program.
Responding to this, the minister emphasized that the government was committed to improving the welfare of the Papuan people through sustainable agricultural development.
"Then the rice fields, even from several provinces asked for the addition of rice fields, including West Papua and others. We will add this," said Amran.
Meanwhile, as part of strengthening the national agricultural sector, Amran said the government was also accelerating the commodity processing program for plantations with food SOEs.
The program is focused on the development and cultivation of value-added commodities such as cocoa, coffee, rambutan, coconut, and sugar cane to increase productivity as well as farmers' income.
The government itself has allocated a budget of Rp. 9.5 trillion for the development of these commodities with a target of 870,000 hectares (ha) of people's gardens in the period 2025-2027.
This program is expected not only to increase production, but also to encourage the growth of the local economy, especially in the center villages of plantations.
In the midst of the government's efforts to accelerate agricultural development in Papua, a number of civil society groups and environmental activists are still voicing criticism of large-scale food projects that fall under the category of National Strategic Projects (PSN) in the region.
The criticism was voiced, among others, through a documentary film entitled Pesta Babi which highlights the social, cultural, and environmental impacts of the development of food areas in Papua.
The documentary depicts the concerns of some indigenous people about changes in lifestyles, the potential for a reduction in traditional living spaces, and threats to forests and local food sources that have long been the mainstay of local people's lives.
A number of civil society organizations also encourage that every agricultural development and food security program in Papua continues to prioritize the principles of protecting the rights of indigenous peoples, environmental sustainability, and the involvement of local residents in the planning and implementation process.
However, the government emphasized that the agricultural development program in Papua aims to improve the welfare of the community, strengthen national food security, and open new employment opportunities for residents in the area.
The government also stated that it would continue to carry out evaluations and assistance so that the implementation of the program would run according to the needs of the community and the local conditions of Papua.
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