Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesia's Minister of Forestry Raja Juli Antoni has revealed the government's plan to utilize reserved forests as sources of food, energy, and water security.After meeting with President Prabowo Subianto at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Monday, he said that the new concept would provide direct support to the programs of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources.
"We have identified 20 million hectares of forests that can be utilized for food, energy, and water security," he disclosed.
During discussions with President Prabowo and Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Sakti Wahyu Trenggono, Antoni said that one of the main focuses of reserved forest use is the cultivation of upland rice, which can grow in dry-land environments.
An estimated 1.1 million hectares of land can potentially produce up to 3.5 million tons of rice per year, he highlighted. This amount is equivalent to Indonesia's total rice imports in 2023, Antoni added.
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In addition, the government plans to plant sugar palm trees as sources of bioethanol.
"One hectare of sugar palm can produce 24,000 kiloliters of bioethanol. If we plant 1.5 million hectares of sugar palm, we can produce 24 million kiloliters of bioethanol, which can replace 26 million kiloliters of fuel imports," he said.
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According to Antoni, the idea of utilizing reserved forests is expected to support national food security by expanding food estates to the village level.
"This is not only a large food estate, but also small food barns in districts, sub-districts, and even villages," he said.
Although the primary responsibility for food and energy self-sufficiency will remain with the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, the Ministry of Forestry will support the program by providing land, Antoni stated.
