WNAM REPORT: Indonesia and Japan expressed their readiness to explore cooperation in agricultural technology to mitigate the risks posed by climate change, Indonesian Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman announced on Tuesday.
The cooperation was marked by a meeting between Sulaiman and Japanese Minister of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries (MAFF), Eto Taku, in Jakarta on Tuesday.
“Currently, the most important aspect is cooperation in technology to mitigate the risks of climate change,” Sulaiman stated at the press conference.
He noted that several countries are facing challenges in the agricultural sector due to global climate change.
Both ministers also acknowledged challenges in the agricultural sector, considering the high temperatures that can affect farmers’ productivity.
“We are experiencing the same problem, namely, extremely hot weather due to high temperatures. This phenomenon caused a decrease in our production. Climate change results in low productivity that affects farmers’ income as well,” he pointed out.
On the other hand, Sulaiman highlighted that Indonesia has fertile land with ample water resources, presenting an opportunity to establish cooperation in realizing modern agricultural clusters.
He noted that the two countries are considering conducting trade in addition to agricultural technology.
Sulaiman stated that Indonesia has a surplus of crude palm oil (CPO), while Japan has excess cow’s milk production.
“We offered CPO and requested Japanese milk for Indonesia, as our milk supply is still insufficient. Technical details of this trade cooperation will be discussed later,” he noted.
Earlier, Sulaiman stated that Malaysia had also shown interest in learning about Indonesia’s agricultural system for preparing food reserve stocks, especially in the face of climate change.
The minister stated that Malaysia struggles to maintain productivity due to climate change, while Indonesia has succeeded through rapid steps such as pumping.
“They want to learn about seedlings, water management, shallow wells, deep wells, and pump irrigation. They planned to send their team to study in Indonesia,” Sulaiman stated on April 27.
