Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
FIGURE 6.1
Productivity figures for rice, 1960-2001
Productivity (tons per hectare)
6.00
Land productivity
Production per capita
5.00
4.00
3.00
2.00
1.00
0.00
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976
1980
1984
1988
1992
1996
2000
NOTE
: Land productivity in tons per hectare.
and Ruttan 1985). Agricultural development in Indonesia demonstrated the
power of the strategy to promote and distribute input packages of HYV, fertil-
izer, pesticides, affordable credit, and extension services, such as technical in-
formation, training, and visits.
These strategies contributed to technological progress and stimulated agri-
cultural growth, particularly by sustaining food production in the country. As a
result of these long-term efforts, Indonesia achieved self-sufficiency in rice pro-
duction in the 1980s. During the 1985 World Food Summit, President Suharto
received an award for successfully transforming his country from being the
largest rice importer in the world to self-sufficiency. More importantly, this
achievement was accompained with greater equality among rice farmers, and
between rural and urban areas, in several places in Indonesia.
Political economy had a great deal to do with the success of BULOG. The
public administration system of President Suharto's New Order regime con-
sisted of people with a strong commitment and was well organized and linearly
commanded all the way from national to the district and village levels. The
longest-serving chairman of BULOG, General Bustanil Arifin, belonged to one
of the close circles of President Suharto, and also served as the Minister of
Cooperatives in the 1980s. He had a clear advantage in making critical deci-
sions and enforcing them quickly. The government allocated massive public re-
sources to building warehouses, food managemet offices, and other infrastruc-
ture. Rural cooperatives (KUD, or
Koperasi Unit Desa
) collected rice from
local farmers, especially during the harvest season, and distributed rice, in-
cluding imported rice, especially during the poor planting seasons, drought, and
similar adverse situations. With more than 2,400 grain warehouses, the gov-
ernment had the largest network of food storage in the country.
