inp.polri.go.id - Jakarta. Secretary General of the Ministry of Home Affairs Tomsi Tohir asked regional governments to optimize rain-fed rice fields to support national food self-sufficiency.

He said that irrigation and pumping programs would be intensified in anticipation of the dry season. He emphasized the importance of technical clarity in the field, including regarding the form of assistance, implementation time, and the person in charge of the program from each ministry/institution (K/L).

"The things that will certainly be assisted by the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Public Works to the regions are in what form? Then how much is the value? When will it be implemented? Then who is responsible? Will the implementation be handed over to the regions or to the center?" noted Tomsi in the Coordination Meeting for the Acceleration of Food Self-sufficiency Facing the 2025 Dry Season, Jakarta, Tuesday (6/3/2025).

Meanwhile, Secretary General of the Ministry of Agriculture Ali Jamil explained that in supporting the food self-sufficiency program promoted by President Prabowo Subianto, the government has instructed that all rice fields in Indonesia be planted with rice, not other commodities.

He highlighted the tendency of rice field conversion in several regions such as Central Java and East Java, which in the dry season are often planted with corn, tobacco, or peanuts. For this reason, the involvement of local governments and the TNI-INP is considered crucial in supporting the optimization of rice fields.

Furthermore, the Ministry of Agriculture has also distributed various assistance such as agricultural tools and machinery, including water pumps and pipes. Ali explained that rice fields around rivers will be empowered through pumping and pipe irrigation systems, which are expected to function optimally.

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