Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Peatland Restoration Agency (BRG) has developed 14 food resilience-based villages in peatland areas, in cooperation with the Village, Development of Disadvantaged Regions and Transmigration Ministry.
The agency's Deputy for Education, Socialization, Participation and Partnership Myrna A Safitri said in a statement here on Sunday, food resilience has become one focus of the agency since the establishment of Peatland-Care Village in 2017.
The development of the food resilience-based villages would be conducted through close cooperation among villages, and in an prudent manner especially in degraded peatland, she said.
Therefore, she continued, the agency has established a field school for peatland farmers to train them on agricultural land management without slash and burn practice.
Previously, a spokesman of the Agriculture Ministry Kuntoro Boga said the ministry has run the program to increase peatland production capacity in Central Kalimantan, that covers an area of 85,456 hectares for intensification program and 79,142 hectares for extensification program.
In addition to paddy field, the extensification program will also include development of corn plantation, shallot, garlic, chilli, and sugar cane plantation, as well as cattle farm to reduce import.
On the development of food estate in Central Kalimantan, Boga said, the ministry has targeted to develop food estate covering an area of 10 thousand hectares, and as of now, some 7 thousand hectares have been cultivated.
"The food estate program is conducted in mineral peatland and alluvial land, not peatland area," he noted.
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