Indonesia, the largest economy in Southeast Asia, faces significant challenges in poverty, food insecurity, and malnutrition, with 9.8% of its population below the poverty line and millions at risk of hunger. The government has implemented various programs to tackle these issues while focusing on agricultural development, including investment in research and development, improving food security, and providing support to smallholder farmers. Current policies emphasize enhancing agricultural productivity and providing social protection to vulnerable households.

1. ASEAN
Association of Southeast Asian Nations
INDONESIAN PLANERY SESSION
(Agricultural economy)

2. BACKGROUND
Indonesia, the largest economy in Southeast Asia, is worlds 4th most populous nation and 10th largest
economy in terms of purchasing power parity.
From 2000 to 2015, the Indonesian population grew by 1.34% yearly. Income, represented by GDP, grew
faster, by 3.56%, and per capita GDP, by 2.22%
The poverty level in Indonesia is still high by ASEAN standards, with nearly 26 million people (9.8%)
below the poverty line in March of 2018.
There were 4.6 million malnourished children and 20.7 million people (8.3% of the population) at risk of
hunger in Indonesia in 2015.
The number of people at risk of hunger represented a significant improvement over the 42 million people
(20% of the total population) in 2000, but additional effort is needed to further reduce hunger.

3. Population

4. Decrease in share of employment in Agriculture

5. Population & GDP trends

7. Poverty

8. Child Malnutrition

9. AGRICULTURAL/DEVELOPMENTAL POLICIES
Agriculture retains an important role in the Indonesian economy, even though
its share of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) has declined with
economic growth, as is typical in the process of economic growth and
structural transformation.
Some of the highlights for the agricultural and developmental policies are:
• Food Security and Self Sufficiency
• Infrastructure Development
• Sustainable Agriculture
• R&D and Technological Advancement
• Support for Smallholder Farmers
• Trade and Market Expansion
Agricultural
Decline
Year
30.0% 1975
23.0% 1985
15.3% 2010
13.1% 2017

10. PAST ACTIONS
Some of the actions taken by Indonesian government in the past to
tackle poverty, food insecurity, and malnutrition are:
• Beras Untuk Rakyat Miskin (Raskin) Program
• National Poverty Reduction Program (PNPM)
• Nutrition Improvement Programs

11. PRESENT ACTIONS
Some of the actions that are being considered by the Indonesian
government in this present to tackle poverty, food insecurity, and
malnutrition are:
• Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement
• Social Safety Nets
• Food Estate Program

12. COUNTRY’S WAY FORWARD TO ZERO
HUNGER

13. STRATEGY FOCUS OF POLICY IMPACT
Investment in Agricultural Research
and Development (R&D)
Increasing investments in agricultural
R&D to improve productivity,
resilience, and sustainability in the
food sector.
This policy includes developing high-
yielding and climate-resilient crop
varieties, investing in precision
agriculture, and advancing irrigation
technologies.
By boosting agricultural productivity
and making the sector more resilient
to climate change, this policy directly
addresses food availability and
reduces hunger.
Social Protection Programs and
Targeted Subsidies
Indonesia implements the several
protection programs, providing food
assistance through vouchers for
essential goods.
This ensures vulnerable households
have consistent access to food and
improves their nutritional security.
Such as: Bantuan Pangan Non-Tunai
(BPNT)
These programs help alleviate both
poverty and hunger by providing
direct support to low-income
families, ensuring they have access to
basic food supplies.
Provision of Subsidies for seeds,
fertilizers, and rural infrastructure to
small scale farmers.

14. POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS

15. References
• Asian Development Bank. (2019). Policies to support investment requirements of Indonesia’s food
and agriculture development during 2020-2045. Asian Development Bank.
• Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2020). Agricultural policy
monitoring and evaluation 2020. Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development
(OECD).
• FAOSTAT. (n.d.). Fao.org. Retrieved October 18, 2024, from https://www.fao.org/faostat/en/