[INNEWS Comprehensive Report] On September 5, Penn Sovicheat, State Secretary and Spokesperson of the Cambodian Ministry of Commerce, revealed that Cambodia’s agreement to supply 250,000 tons of rice to Indonesia per year will be for a period of four years and will be implemented starting in 2024.
It is understood that when Indonesian President Joko Widodo met with Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet in Jakarta, he expressed satisfaction with Cambodia’s agreement to supply 250,000 tons of rice to Indonesia every year. At the same time, Indonesia will support Cambodia’s food security through the supply of agricultural fertilizers. “I am very satisfied with Cambodia’s positive response regarding the annual supply of 250,000 tons of rice,” the Indonesian president said.
Penn Sovicheat said that Cambodia and India will revise the memorandum of understanding between the Cambodian Ministry of Commerce and the Indonesian Ministry of Commerce on the annual supply of 250,000 tons of rice within four years. Prices will be negotiated based on actual market fluctuations. We are committed to exporting rice, first of all, we are a food producing country, and we have an oversupply of food. Second, the Cambodian government is concerned with promoting the development of the agricultural sector. The Ministry of Agriculture sends agricultural experts to rural areas to improve production levels and maintain product quality. We expect to be able to have enough grain for export, either to Indonesia, the Philippines or the European market. We will also further explore new international markets.
It should be mentioned that according to Zulkifli Hasan, Minister of Trade of Indonesia, the host country, after India stopped exporting rice to Indonesia, Cambodia and Indonesia reached an agreement to supply 250,000 tons of rice per year. Indonesia initially planned to import 1 million tons of rice from India, but the proposal was rejected. And Bulog Company is tasked with purchasing 2 million tons of rice from Thailand and Vietnam.
Indonesian government data shows that as of September 4, Bulog’s national rice inventory has reached nearly 1.6 million tons. The Indonesian government is actively taking measures to increase food reserves to cope with drought and harvest impacts caused by El Niño.
