Is Indonesia Truly Food Self-Sufficient, as Prabowo Claims?
According to President Prabowo, Indonesia's food security remains stable, helping cushion the impact of the El Nino threat.
President Prabowo Subianto announced in his annual speech on August 14, 2026 that Indonesia had achieved food self-sufficiency in just one year of his presidency. This achievement was ahead of the government's initial four-year target. Prabowo stated that national food security was solid, and Indonesia would not face famine or supply shortages, even during the El Niño phenomenon.
He expressed confidence that the nation could progressively reduce its dependence on foreign food imports as domestic production increased. However, Prabowo acknowledged that Indonesia had not yet reached self-sufficiency in protein sources like poultry, eggs, and meat. An observer from the Association of Indonesian Political Economy, Khudori, questioned the definition of food self-sufficiency and the strict interpretation required to evaluate the government's claims.
He pointed out that the government needed to define self-sufficiency more clearly, as the current broad definition left room for interpretation. Khudori provided an example of rice self-sufficiency, stating that if the threshold was set at 90% local supply, Indonesia would be self-sufficient in rice based on the data available. The National Food Agency reported that rice imports made up a small percentage of overall consumption, and the country was projected to meet its rice needs through the end of the year.
Written by urgent.news from Tempo.co English's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
