MORATORIUM OF LAND REFUNCTION

The government of RI planned to exercise moratorium of land refunctioning for three years. The policy was felt necessary because trend of land conversion from agricultural to non agricultural functions was at large and had arrived at fearful point. Unless stopped, land conversion would threaten national food production.

The Minister of Agriculture Suswono stated that the moratorium would be exercised through Presindential Instruction (Inpress). The proposal for moratorium, which was scheduled to be in effect by 2013 - 2015, was now at the Ministry of Economy. It was expected that the proposal would be dissected before it was forwarded to the President.

“With the Impress for moratorium of land refunctioning being put in effect, hopefully there would be no more refunctioning of land from ricefields to other purposes beyond agriculture escept in emergency condition. The proposed moratorium would be effective for three years”, Minester Suswono remarked.

The Government admitted that land refunctioning from ricefields to other purposes beyond agriculture had caused anxiety because it threatened food production at home. Moreover there had always been tug-of-war between growers of rice, corn and soy in terms of land functioning. The result was that less profitable agro-commodities were being abandoned. It happened to soy as indicated by the ever declining production.

On the other hand the Provincial Government had also been too permissive about allowing land conversions. The reason was because the economic value of land for agriculture was much too low compared to other functions like housing. “This is the reason why we propose a moratorium of land refunctioning” the Minister said.

In the future the Minister of Agriculture was expecting agricultural reformation to run well. Soon farmers would cultivate agricultural land at least 2 hectares per family head, unlike to day where one family head managed only around 0.3 to 0.5 hectares. In Thailand, which was the world’s rice producer, one farmer managed up to 3 hectares of ricefield.

Other efforts to prevent land refunctioning was to approach the Indonesian Council of Ulamas, NU, and Muhammadiyah to pronounce a religious edict to discourage distribution of agricultural land in will. “Soon what is being willed is not just land distribution but distribution of land yields” Suswono remarked.

Meanwhile Sumardjo Gatot Irianto, Director General of Agricultural Infra Structures (PSP), the Ministry of Agriculture stated the speed of loss of ricefields in Indonesia had arrived at the critical point, which called for sound measures of all parties to stop it. There for the public must realize how serious the matter wan and to anticipate all the consequences.

It was estimated that the process of rice field disappearance had come to 110 thousand hectares per year, while the capacity to open new ricefields areas was only 45 thousand hectares per year. “If the problem is not tackled seriously as from now on, we will have a terrible food disaster which would even have its bad impact on the social and political side” Gatot Irianto remarked.

Data of the Ministry of Agriculture had it that today there were around 8.06 million ha of ricefields with annual harvest area of 12.86 million ha. This year, with the potential of around 13.2 hectares of land the land composition still posted surplus of 120 million hectares.

However with increased population, by Governments calculation in 2015 the total harvest area needed would be around 13.38 million ha. If land conversion came to 550 thousand ha and the potential soil was only 13.2 million ha, there would be deficit of around 730 thousand ha. If the condition continued, we will keep on having deficit of land” Gatot concluded.

It was most regretful that although the Government had put in effect Law no. 41/2009 on the protection of sustainable agricultural land for food, the implementation turned out to be still low. And yet the Law had flatly stated to put sanction and set the size of fine for law breakers who converted ricefields into other purposes.

An example was when data of the National Land Board (BPN) in 2004 showed there was around 8.9 million hectares of land allocated for ricefields highly potential for ricefields but in the Regional Space Planning (RTRW) of regencies and cities there where around 3 million land highly potential for ricefields had changed into other functions.

To troubleshoot the mountaing cases of land refunctioning, the Government planned to issue a moratorium of land refunctioning through Presidential Instructions (Impress); the policy was expected to be in effect in early 2013. “Whit the issuance of Impress all land conversions could not be tolerated as long as the Law was in effect. Beside, it would allow enough time for opening new plantation areas.” (SS)

Business News - January 04,2013