Evaluating Food Sovereignty Under President Joko Widodo: Progress or Setback?

Palm Oil Magazine
Evaluating Food Sovereignty Under President Joko Widodo. Photo by: Special

PALMOILMAGAZINE, JAKARTA – For nearly a decade under President Joko Widodo, food sovereignty has been a closely watched campaign promise. President Widodo pledged to achieve food sovereignty, but the question remains: has it been realized?

Tejo Wahyu Jatmiko of Perkumpulan Indonesia Berseru noted that food sovereignty under Widodo’s leadership is “a work in progress.” Despite numerous programs, the results often fall short of the intended goals, and some policies have been counterproductive. For instance, Indonesia’s reliance on food imports has grown, contradicting the aim of self-sufficiency.

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Tejo also highlighted that the government’s focus on certain crops like corn, rice, and soybeans hasn’t significantly reduced import dependency. The increased imports have positioned Indonesia as a country heavily reliant on foreign food sources.

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Land conversion for plantations and infrastructure has further impacted food sovereignty. Achmad Surambo, Executive Director of Sawit Watch, reported that from 2015 to 2024, approximately 698,566 hectares were converted to palm oil plantations. “Land that could support food production is being repurposed, worsening Indonesia’s food sovereignty,” he said, as quoted by Palmoilmagazine.com on Thursday (17/10/2024).

Giorgio Budi Indrarto of MADANI Berkelanjutan also said many wet and dry agricultural areas in Kalimantan and Sumatera changed to be palm oil plantations, these threatened the area allocation for food sectors. He thought, these would have something to do with the national scale – food system if they were not managed well.

Back to Tejo, he emphasized if the next government – President Prabowo Subianto and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka would improve food condition, they should focus on developing food producer region in small scales and re-manage the agrarian resources. “It needs to reinforce food sovereignty – policies with the clear budget allocation sustainably,” he said. (P2)

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