JakartaPost-Aug 16, 2024
A high-ranking government official estimates that 7 to 16 percent of Indonesia’s population is vulnerable to starvation amid declining domestic rice production. Given the country’s population of 281.6 million as of June, based on Statistics Indonesia data, that would translate to between 20 million and 45 million people being at risk of hunger. “We are still a little bit better than Thailand in terms of food security,” Home Ministry Regional Development Director General Restuardy Daud said on Wednesday during an event organized by the National Movement for Controlling Food Inflation (GNPIP). In his speech broadcast live on YouTube by Bank Indonesia, Restuardy also compared Indonesia’s situation with that of Singapore, a country that he said had greater food security despite relying strongly on imports and having a much smaller landmass. The 2024 state budget allocated Rp 114.3 trillion (US$7.28 billion) for food security to increase the availability, access and stabilization of food prices. That figure marks a continued increase over the last five years. On June 27, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo warned that the country was expected to face heat waves and droughts over the next four months, potentially leading to a food crisis, citing information from the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG). Read more at: https://www.thejakartapost.com/business/2024/08/16/up-to-45-million-indonesians-at-risk-of-hunger-home-ministry.html.
