Last Updated :
22 February 2010 at 11:25 IST
Indonesia aims to feed the world by 2030
JAKARTA (Commodity Online) : World’s fourth largest populous country, Indonesia said it expects to become one of the world's major food producer.
Announcing plans to fast-track development of vast agricultural estates in its remote areas like Papua and Borneo, Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said the country is encouraging foreign and local investors to lease huge swathes of fertile countryside and help make the country a major food producer.
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He said, "If everything goes well, Indonesia should be able to be self-sufficient in five years. And then it can start to feed the world,"
"Feed Indonesia, then feed the world, Between now and 2030 Indonesia expects to become one of the world's biggest producers of rice, maize, sugar, coffee, shrimp, meats and palm oil, he said.
Indonesia has been self-sufficient in rice since 2008 and is already the top producer of palm oil.
According to country’s Agriculture department, the first area targeted for development is 1.6 million hectares in the southeast of the largely undeveloped province of Papua, around the town of Merauke.
"We chose Merauke because it's the ideal place for food crop cultivation, such as rice, corn, soybean and
Sugar cane,” said a statement from the ministry.
“Merauke district has 4.5 million hectares of land; 2.5 million hectares are ideal for cultivation.
"The area is flat and has a good climate. Its soil is appropriate for those crops. Sumatra is already congested with other plantations, such as palm oil, and Kalimantan is already full of mining areas and many plantation areas also." It added.
To prevent monopoly, Indonesia allows foreigners to control a maximum of 49 percent of any investing country and made it clear that it was selling land use rights, not the land itself.
But the cultivation drive is met with opposition from local farmers.
However, analysts said, such worries are well known in other countries with similar schemes, such as Brazil and Madagascar, where there is deep suspicion about food and bio-fuel companies monopolising agricultural land.
To lure investors, the South East nation offers incentives like tax breaks and reductions in customs and excise duties.
So far, investors from Japan, South Korea and the Middle East have shown interest in the Indonesian project.
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