PALMOILMAGAZINE, KAMPAR – The palm oil industry plays a significant role in Indonesia’s economy. However, in recent years, the palm oil production sector has faced substantial challenges on a national scale. In response to these issues, the Indonesian Palm Oil Association (IPOA) is actively promoting the acceleration of the Smallholders Replanting Program (SRP) through collaborative development partnerships with IPOA.
The inaugural SRP initiative was launched in the plantations of Koperasi Berkat Ridho, in collaboration with development partners from PT Buana Wiralestari, located in the District of Kampar, Riau Province. This marks the IPOA’s initial commitment to enhancing palm oil plantation productivity and production levels in Indonesia.
Eddy Martono, the Chairman of IPOA, emphasized that the SRP, particularly in partnership schemes, is a primary area of focus. It serves two main objectives: firstly, to assist smallholders in replanting old, damaged, and unproductive trees, and secondly, to boost palm oil plantation productivity and production at the national level.
Also Read : Smallholders in Siak and Kampar Receive Harvest and Post-Harvest Training
Eddy also told that palm oil production was stagnant in the past five years nationally. Meanwhile the consumption kept increasing in the domestic. This needs to escalate the productivity from available plantations because it is not allowed to get new plantings anymore. That is why SRP in partnership scheme would be one solution and hoped to be accelerated.
“We got the data from our members that run plasma partnership. Though the realization would not be in this year, the target is about to get technical recommendation and the planting could be running next year,” Eddy said to Palmoilmagazine.com.
SRP kick-off in partnership scheme that IPOA develops in District of Kampar would be the first thing to accelerate SRP, particularly for IPOA members.
Meanwhile General Director of Plantation Ministry of Agriculture, Andi Nur Alam Syah said that it is important to get partnership between big plantation companies and smallholders’ plantations to minimize the gaps, namely in realizing higher productivity and production in palm oil industries.
“It is not easy to escalate smallholders’ plantation productivity and production because they face many issues, including their interests, legal areas, institutional aspects, and non-optimal supports from the stakeholders, Andi Nur said.
Director of Palm Oil Plantation Fund Management Agency (PFMA), Eddy Abdurrachman said that SRP has been running since 2016 and escalating plasma and independent smallholders’ plantation productivity.
“SRP targets decided by the government would lay about 500 thousand hectares per three years. This is something to face. But by having partnership scheme, it is hoped the target would be realized immediately, Eddy said. (T2)
