Indonesia plans to increase fertilizer subsidies for 2024

Indonesia’s president has signaled his commitment to increasing the budget for fertilizer subsidies by $903.5mn (14 trillion rupiah) this year, local media reported on Tuesday.

Joko Widodo told attendees at a farming event in Central Java that the proposed measure will need to be approved by the House of Representatives, and, if passed, will likely come into effect in the second half of 2024.

The president said that during his visits to rural areas over the past few years farmers have consistently complained about the price of fertilizer.

He noted, however, that there is currently enough fertilizer available. He said that, according to the state-run producer Pupuk Indonesia, fertilizer stocks stand at 1.7 million tonnes, 1.2 million tonnes of which are subsidized, and 500,000 tonnes of which are non-subsidized.

Widodo nonetheless encouraged the country’s farmers to follow agricultural guidelines so as to use their fertilizer as efficiently and carefully as possible.