October 13, 2025 | 08:36 am
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesia's State Secretary Minister, Prasetyo Hadi, has provided an explanation behind the decision of President Prabowo Subianto to appoint Minister of Agriculture Amran Sulaiman to also hold the position as the Head of the National Food Body (Bapanas), replacing Arief Prasetyo Adi.
According to Prasetyo, the decision was made because the function and duties of Bapanas have always been closely related to the Ministry of Agriculture. "So, the function of the food body's duties was originally under the Ministry of Agriculture and since Mr. Arief is being assigned elsewhere, the function is directly held by the Minister of Agriculture," said Prasetyo at President Prabowo's residence in the Kertanegara area, Jakarta, as quoted by Antara, on Sunday night, October 12, 2025.
He explained that the coordination between Bapanas and the Ministry of Agriculture has been running in harmony, so the appointment of Amran is considered an efficient step to strengthen the national food management. "The Minister of Agriculture and Bapanas have always been working side by side," he said.
Regarding the news of the decreased quality of rice in the market, Prasetyo stated that there have been no direct reports to Prabowo, but the government still considers it a top priority.
"Indeed, that is the focus of the Ministry of Agriculture and our colleagues at Bulog on how to improve storage management. Our warehouses need repairs and additions, including the construction of new warehouses in 100 locations," he said.
He added that the President has also requested the support of the TNI and the National Police to assist in the construction of innovative food warehouses and to coordinate with the Ministry of Home Affairs so that strengthening food reserves can reach down to the village level.
"We need to reinvigorate food-producing centers like before. We need to have food reserves or rice barns in each respective village, so that we can truly be self-sufficient in food," said Prasetyo.
Prabowo officially appointed the Minister of Agriculture, Andi Amran Sulaiman, as the Head of the National Food Body (Bapanas), replacing Arief Prasetyo Adi. This decision is outlined in the copy of the President's Decision (Keppres) number 116/P year 2025 regarding the Dismissal and Appointment of the Head of the National Body, signed by the Head of State on October 9, 2025.
The Director of Digital Economy Celios Nailul Huda expressed concerns about the potential conflict of interest due to the differing functions between Bapanas and the Ministry of Agriculture. According to Nailul, Bapanas is tasked with coordinating, formulating, and determining supplies, price stabilization, and food vulnerability.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Agriculture is responsible for increasing domestic food supply. "How can the Head of Bapanas call on ministers to discuss food without organizational interests," said Nailul on Saturday, October 11, 2025. Nailul cautioned that future food price stabilization policies may be biased towards agricultural interests without considering the consumer's perspective.
Alfitria Nefi P contributed to the writing of this article.
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