Indonesia mulls importing rice from many countries (Photos: thejakartapost.com) Jakarta (VNA) - Indonesian President Joko Widodo said on September 11 that the country is eyeing rice imports from India and China to meet the rising domestic demand.
The president revealed that Indonesia currently has two million tonnes of rice in the government’s rice reserves, which is enough for meeting the current needs.
However, he said, imports are still necessary to deal with the impact of El Nino this year and to secure supplies for up to next year.
The president acknowledged that he discussed with some Asian countries’ leaders including Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet, Bangladeshi President Mohamed Shahabuddin, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese Premier Li Qiang about opportunities to import rice.
He announced that Indonesia has signed a contract to import 400,000 tonnes of rice from a number of countries, mainly from Cambodia. The order will arrive in the country in the coming days.
The Indonesian government previously announced a policy to support 210,000 tonnes of rice for impoverished people in three months, starting from September 1./.
