Government Re-submitting Stimulant Funds For Handling Harvest Failure

Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Muhadjir Effendy after the Ministerial Meeting discussed the handling of crop failure at the Coordinating Ministry for Human Development and Culture, Jakarta, Monday (19/2/2024). (ANTARA/Asep Firmansyah)

JAKARTA - The government through the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) has re-submitted more than Rp200 billion for handling crop failure for farmers affected by puso, said Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Muhadjir Effendy.

"This is done so that aid can be distributed again to affected farmers before December 2024, so that they can return to produce food that is a necessity for the community," said Muhadjir at the Ministerial Meeting (RTM) in Jakarta as reported by ANTARA, Monday, February 19.

In the RTM, the handling of crop failure (puso) due to flooding in 2023 was attended by Minister of Agriculture Amran Sulaiman, Head of BNPB Suharyanto and representatives of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Finance, and BPKP.

Muhadjir said that based on BNPB data, 331 flood disasters were recorded or about 44 percent of the total disaster events that occurred in the January-March 2023 period.

The flood disaster that hit Indonesia in early 2023 has resulted in crop failure in 136 districts/cities in 20 provinces with a total area of 5,469 hectares.

Then President Joko Widodo gave directions on March 6 and April 5, 2023 to provide assistance to farmers who experienced crop failure.

"Following this directive, we have carried out RTM in May 2023 with the result that BNPB will provide compensation for crop failure production costs due to flooding through Ready-to-Use Funds worth Rp. 8 million per hectare to each farmer," said Muhadjir.

However, until the end of 2023, the crop failure assistance has not been completed, so today's RTM has decided that the assistance will be continued to those affected by crop failure.

For 2024, said Muhadjir, assistance for crop failure will be transferred to PT Jasindo on the recommendation of the Minister of Agriculture, with an expanded coverage of 1 million hectares.

If in the past it only included rice fields that were puso due to flooding, now it is extended to farmers who experience drought due to El Nino and pests.

"So, not only Puso due to flooding, but also drought and due to pests. The premium is Rp. 10 million per hectare proposed by the Minister of Agriculture, we will discuss it further in accordance with our fiscal readiness," he said.