Jakarta (ANTARA) -
Indonesia will pay farmers daily wages to rehabilitate disaster-hit rice fields in Sumatra to protect national food production while providing income during recovery, Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman said.
Under a labor-intensive scheme, farmers will restore their own land, with all costs covered by the central government, including free seeds, land preparation, and irrigation repairs, under a direct presidential order.
"Our farmers earn daily income while working on their own fields, while land preparation, seeds, and irrigation are fully covered by the central government," Amran said on Friday.
The program covers Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra, where total rice field damage reached 98,002 hectares. Aceh accounts for the largest area at 54,233 hectares, followed by North Sumatra with 37,318 hectares and West Sumatra with 6,451 hectares.
Light to moderate damage totals 69,240 hectares, including 48,969 hectares of light damage and 20,271 hectares of moderate damage across the three provinces, the agriculture ministry said.
In Aceh alone, around 10,000 hectares will be rehabilitated, requiring an estimated 200,000 workdays, while light and moderate damage in the Aceh Utara district totals 8,237 hectares.
Rehabilitation from January to February 2026 will prioritize 13,708 hectares of lightly and moderately damaged land before work begins on severely damaged areas.
The ministry aims to complete repairs on 90 to 95 percent of recoverable rice fields first to ensure national rice production remains stable, Amran said.
