Jakarta. A diplomat representing major rice supplier Vietnam recently responded to Indonesia’s plan to stop the import of its staple food, saying that Jakarta might eventually change its mind.

Indonesia wants to stop importing rice this year. The country mainly imports rice from fellow ASEAN countries, particularly Vietnam. Vietnamese Ambassador to Indonesia Ta Van Thong told reporters on Wednesday that he was fully aware of Indonesia's plan to discontinue rice imports by 2025. If Indonesia actually proceeds with the ban, Vietnam thinks it is only a matter of time before Jakarta budges as climate change will possibly take a toll on its rice production and the government reserve.

“We have heard that Indonesia plans to suspend  [rice] import because you have enough reserve. I think that [plan] is not sustainable. That stock would be used up. So when Indonesia needs to import [once the supply is depleted], it will [go back to] importing rice again,” Thong said in a press briefing.

Thong cited uncertainties within the global supply chain as one of the factors that could prompt Indonesia to purchase Vietnamese rice again.

“You [Indonesia] have plenty of rain this year, but remember that you had no rain at all and this affected your rice production,” the diplomat said.

According to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), Indonesia imported 1.1 million tons of rice from Vietnam in 2023. This made Vietnam the country’s second-largest foreign supplier of rice after Thailand (1.3 million tons). BPS data showed domestic rice production had dropped from around 31.1 million tons in 2023 to 30.6 million tons the following year. Early estimates revealed that Indonesia could produce nearly 8.6 million tons of rice in the first three months of 2025. Domestic rice demand will reach 31 million tons in 2025. Indonesia wants to increase its rice output to 32 million tons this year, thus giving the country a 1 million surplus. 

“We are one of the world’s leading rice exporters. In the spirit of [bilateral] friendship and ASEAN, we will work closely with Indonesia to achieve the country’s food sufficiency target,” Thong said.

Indonesia-Vietnam's overall trade had soared from $12.8 billion in 2023 to $15.9 billion the following year. The bilateral trade registered a $3 billion surplus for Indonesia in 2024, official figures showed.

Prabowo wants Indonesia to unlock food self-sufficiency by 2027. He had recently inked the second presidential instruction of the year that specifically aimed to help Indonesia be able to feed its people without having to rely on imports. To this end, Prabowo had ordered his ministers to quickly develop the irrigation systems in the country.

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