Indonesian Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman speaks at the grand harvest event in Karawang (Photo: antaranews.com)
 

Jakarta (VNA) - Indonesia is targeting rice exports after reaching self-sufficiency and securing domestic supplies in 2025, according to the country’s Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman.

Speaking at a grand harvest event in Karawang, West Java province on January 7, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto said the country’s goal is not temporary self-sufficiency, but the ability to meet domestic food needs consistently every year through stronger agriculture and logistics systems.

The President said sustained self-sufficiency will demonstrate Indonesia’s capacity to overcome long-standing doubts about its food security.

The Government will continue to expand its self-sufficiency goals to other strategic commodities such as maize, cassava and garlic, while accelerating agricultural modernisation, mechanisation and the application of technology to boost productivity.

The President also encouraged the development of elite rice varieties with a target yield of 15 tonnes per hectare, laying a long-term foundation for food security and export capacity.

Currently, Indonesia’s government rice reserves stand at 3.2 million tonnes, after peaking at four million tonnes in mid-2025, Minister Sulaiman said, describing the stockpile as the strongest in the country’s history.

He contrasted the current situation with 1984, when Indonesia received recognition from the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation despite holding government rice stocks of only about two million tonnes at the time.

Beyond state reserves, rice consumption by hotels, restaurants and catering businesses has also reached a national record of 12 million tonnes, reflecting robust demand alongside rising production, the minister added.

VNA