InfoSAWIT, JAKARTA - Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman held a two-day marathon meeting over the weekend, on Saturday and Sunday (June 28-29, 2025), to finalize strategies for accelerating national sugar self-sufficiency and strengthening the downstream processing of plantation commodities. The meeting took place at the Minister's private residence and involved senior officials from the Ministry of Agriculture and relevant technical partners.
This initiative follows the directive from President Prabowo Subianto, emphasizing the importance of downstream processing in strategic sectors, including agriculture, to create added value, expand job opportunities, and strengthen national economic resilience.
"We do not have time to delay. This is a serious step in shaping the future of the agricultural industry and accelerating national independence," Amran asserted, as reported by InfoSAWIT from the Ministry of Agriculture's website on Monday (June 30, 2025).
During the meeting, Minister Amran highlighted the importance of strengthening extensification and downstream processing for key commodities such as sugarcane, palm oil, cocoa, coffee, coconut, and cashews. For sugar, the government has set ambitious targets, including the opening of 500,000 hectares of new land, the construction of 10 sugar mills, and 3 bioethanol plants.
The government aims to achieve national sugar self-sufficiency for consumption by 2028, with plans to expand this to full self-sufficiency for industrial and energy needs by 2030.
Data from the Ministry of Agriculture indicates that national sugar production is projected to reach 2.75 million tons this year—the highest figure in the last five years. Amran also targets an increase in sugarcane productivity from 4 tons per hectare to 14 tons, reminiscent of the glory days of the national sugar sector in the 1930s.
For palm oil, the government's strategy includes converting unproductive rubber land into two million hectares of new palm oil plantations. Additionally, plans to build 20 biodiesel plants are seen as a crucial pillar in strengthening national energy resilience.
"Palm oil is not just about CPO. It's about our energy future. We want to build biodiesel; our potential is enormous," Amran stated.
In addition to industrial infrastructure development, the Ministry of Agriculture is also paying special attention to the role of the younger generation. The Minister encourages land management schemes of up to 5 hectares for millennial farmers to engage directly in the plantation sector.
PT Perkebunan Nusantara (PTPN) has also been asked to play a strategic role in providing superior seeds and precision land management.
Not only pursuing production targets and added value, Amran emphasized the importance of job creation. One indicator of the success of this program will be measured by the number of Person Work Days (HOK) absorbed over the next three years.
To ensure the acceleration of implementation, the Minister has given his team a two-day deadline to finalize all plans in detail.
"If we are slow, we will be left behind. But if we move quickly and cohesively, we can lead," Amran concluded.
Through this strategy, the Ministry of Agriculture aims to enhance the added value of plantation products while accelerating national food and energy independence based on domestic resources. This is part of the agricultural sector's contribution to fulfilling President Prabowo Subianto's grand vision of making Indonesia a sovereign and highly competitive economic power in downstream processing. (T2)
