Indonesia Deploys 56,000 Water Pumps to Combat Drought and Secure Food Supply

Indonesia's Ministry of Agriculture is mobilizing 56,000 water pumps as a key strategy to combat drought and safeguard national food self-sufficiency. The initiative, part of the 2026 budget, aims to ensure continuous water supply to rice fields, a critical measure to avert a potential food crisis.

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The pump program is a government strategy to ensure that rice fields continue to receive water supplies so that food self-sufficiency can be maintained.

Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman emphasized the urgency of the pump program, calling it the quickest solution to anticipate drought's impact. "It's impossible for us to escape a food crisis if we don't implement this quick solution," he stated, highlighting lessons learned from past El Nino events where water availability proved decisive for food production.

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The pump supply is the quickest solution to anticipate the impact of drought.

The ministry is accelerating the distribution of these pumps, particularly to rice production centers with existing water sources like rivers and reservoirs. "I always emphasize that now we need pumping to supply water from the river to the rice fields," Amran explained. This effort is integrated with agricultural modernization, including the distribution of machinery and equipment, to enhance farmer productivity and climate change adaptation.

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It's impossible for us to escape a food crisis if we don't implement this quick solution.

Director General of Agricultural Infrastructure and Facilities, Andi Nur Alam Syah, reported that approximately 11,000 of the 56,000 pumps have been distributed, with another 20,000 in the process. Distribution prioritizes areas facing drought but possessing usable water sources, based on local government proposals. The program's success hinges on active local government support in identifying and utilizing water sources to keep rice fields productive throughout the dry season.

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On the other hand, agricultural modernization through alsintan support is also continuously encouraged by us so that productivity can be maintained and the target of food self-sufficiency can be achieved.