China's Rice Farming Venture in Central Kalimantan Ready to Roll Out

The Indonesian government is set to collaborate with China to develop agricultural land in Kalimantan. The Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Luhut Pandjaitan announced that China will support agricultural development in Central Kalimantan by providing its rice technology. This cooperative project is slated to begin in October 2024. "We asked them to share their rice technology because they have successfully achieved self-sufficiency. They agreed," Luhut stated on his Instagram account @luhut.pandjaitan on Apr. 21.

The agreement was one of the outcomes of the 4th High-Level Dialogue and Cooperation Mechanism (HDCM) between Indonesia and China held in Labuan Bajo, East Nusa Tenggara, on Apr. 19. Luhut mentioned that the next step is to find local partners to collaborate with. "We just need to find local partners because the land has been there for ages, covering an area of up to 1 million hectares," Luhut explained. According to him, the land development will be carried out gradually, starting from 100,000 hectares, then expanding to 200,000 hectares, and so on.

Responding to the plan, Bayu Krisnamurthi, President Director of Perum Bulog, indicated that the company is ready to absorb rice production from the cooperative project. "Bulog is prepared to act as the off-taker if required," Bayu stated on Thursday, Apr. 25.