TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Economist Eliza Mardian from the Center of Reform on Economics (CORE) has criticized the government's food estate project, arguing that it has yet to deliver substantial economic benefits and has instead become a financial burden on the state.

“So far, the food estate has not contributed to an increase in food production, farmer incomes, or local economies because there have been no successful projects,” Eliza said to Tempo on Monday, October 28, 2024.

She attributes the project's continuous failures to a lack of serious planning and implementation. Eliza warns that unless significant changes are made, the food estate is likely to continue to fail.

“People's money must be used wisely. If the construction of the food estate continues to disregard scientific principles, it will undoubtedly fail again,” she emphasized.

Eliza suggests that the funds allocated to the food estate should be redirected to more impactful areas within the agricultural sector, such as irrigation infrastructure. She notes that the 2024 Special Allocation Fund (DAK) for irrigation infrastructure is at Rp1.68 trillion, lower than the allocation for food estate roads at Rp1.1 trillion.

Tata Mustasya, Executive Director of Sustain (Indonesian Sustainable Welfare), echoes Eliza's concerns, highlighting the potential economic losses resulting from the food estate's failures.

“There are still better options for Indonesia to increase food production without damaging the environment at a high cost,” the academician from UPN Veteran Jakarta said to Tempo on Monday, October 28, 2024.

Tata also argues that a decentralized food production model is a more promising approach to achieving food sovereignty and improving farmer welfare than the centralized food estate model.

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