Tangerang wapresri.go.id – Amid the economic crisis that began to hit the world, food security has become one of the important pillars of a nation. The use of technology in agriculture plays a major role in realizing food security.

“It turns out that when we are facing a pandemic and approaching a food crisis, the agriculture sector got become bedrock,” said Vice President KH Ma’ruf Amin after visiting Guler Farm Nature, in Kandawati Village, Tangerang, Banten, Wednesday afternoon (05/10/2022).

According to him, Indonesia was rich in commodities. All we need was a way to continue to innovate so that agricultural production could be more surplus.

“In West Papua, there are more than 125 kinds of bananas. That’s in West Papua only. In other words, we are very rich but underdeveloped. Therefore, I hope it [agriculture] continues to be developed. There should be no sleeping land and no idle workers,” said the Vice President.

In response to this, the Minister of Agriculture Syahrul Yasin Limpo promised to continue to develop agricultural innovations in all regions of Indonesia.

“The Vice President always ordered that it should not only be built in that place but also in the surrounding areas. We are ready [to do so],” he said excitedly.

On the other hand, the Minister of Agriculture reported that food security in Indonesia was currently quite good and had been recognized by the world.

“Rice research international gives an award to the President for the food resilience and security system in Indonesia,” he said.

Previously, accompanied by the Minister of Agriculture, the Vice President seemed enthusiastic about going around Agroeduwisata (agricultural and educational tourism park) Guler Farm Nature and listening to the explanation from the Director General of Agricultural Infrastructure and Facilities (PSP) of the Ministry of Agriculture, Ali Jamil.

The Vice President also appreciated the idea of turning this 3-hectare rice field into a popular tourist spot that offered the charm of the rice field scenery, equipped with a digital farming system pilot and a greenhouse as an education for the community, instagrammable selfie points, restaurants, and coffee shops. In addition, this area was also equipped with prayer rooms, toilets, and a large parking area.

Also attending to accompany the Vice President during this review was the Head of the Vice President Secretariat Ahmad Erani Yustika, Deputy for Economic Policy Support and Investment Promotion Guntur Iman Nefianto, Special Staff for the Vice President Masduki Baidlowi and the Vice President’s Expert Team Farhat Brachma. (DMA/LHS, BPMI, Setwapres)