Food Resilience Needs Strong Institution

Bogor, 15/5 (Antara) - Indonesia needs an institution which has a strong authority and can take a quick decision when food resilience is being threatened, Soetarto Alimoeso, the president director of state logistics board Bulog, has said.

"With its present position, we (Bulog) receive too many instructions," Soetarto said in a discussion on the development of food institutions in Indonesia, particularly after the revision of the law on food here on Tuesday.

He told the discussion, which was moderated by Dr Arif Satria, the dean of the Human Ecology Faculty (FEMA) of the Bogor-Based Institute of Agriculture (IPB), that Bulog had no enough authority to take a decision to ensure the food resilience.

The other speaker in the discussion was Prof Ahmad Suryana, the head of National Food Resilience of the Ministry of Agriculture and Herman Khaeron, the deputy chairman of Commission IV of the House of Representatives (DPR).

Ahmad Suryana said that his side was suggesting the establishment of "the National Food Resilience Agency" (BKPN) which had a strong authority.

"A non-ministerial agency which directly answers to the President should be formed,"  he said.

He said that the task of BKPN included working out the nation's food polices, coordinating, integrating, harmonizing, controlling and supervising the implementation of national food polices by the central and regional governments.

It should also manage food supplies and prices as well formulate price policies and carry out consumption and food security promotion.

Andy Jauhari