Kisanak, There’s a poignant tale of irony unfolding in our beloved nation, Indonesia. A fertile agrarian country where rice prices soar to unprecedented heights, reaching historical peaks.
Imagine, medium-grade rice priced at Rp14,000 per kilogram and premium rice at Rp18,000 per kilogram. That’s like buying a complete Padang rice dish with rendang!
This question might be harder to answer than “Why did the chicken cross the road?”. But let’s give it a try.
According to agricultural observer from Lampung University, Bustanul Arifin, this surge is expected to continue until the harvest season of April 2024.
Why? El Nino causing planting seasons to delay and rice production in 2023 dropped by around one million tons.
Now, picture El Nino as a mischievous child always messing up your toys. We all know El Nino’s favorite toys are weather and climate, and this time, he’s messed up our planting season.
The result? Decreased rice production and soaring rice prices.
Amidst this rice price hike, hundreds of citizens in various regions are willing to queue for hours just to get cheap rice offered by the government through market operations.
Imagine those long queues like lines of K-Pop fans waiting for their idol’s concert.
Except, they’re not waiting to witness a spectacular performance, but to get cheap rice.
Deputy Minister of Trade, Jerry Sambuaga, said the Ministry is ready to take strategic steps like market operations, monitoring distributors to traders to maintain staple food price stability during Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr.
It’s like a football coach designing strategies to win the game. Except, the game isn’t on the green field, but in the market.
So, despite being an agrarian nation, we still face challenges in maintaining rice price stability.
However, as the saying goes, “Every problem has a solution.” Let’s hope that the solution to this problem is found soon, so we can all enjoy affordable fried rice again.
Remember, even though rice prices may rise, our spirit as a nation must never waver.
Let’s keep fighting and praying for rice, our staple food, to become affordable for everyone again. Keep fighting, Indonesia.
That’s all, Kisanak.
source: BBC and other reliable media outlets