Jakarta. State-owned fertilizer company Pupuk Indonesia has partnered with the Indonesian Army to optimize hundreds of hectares of dormant agricultural land in their joint agroforestry program in Purwakarta.

Pupuk Indonesia's President Director Rahmad Pribadi and the Chief of Staff of the Indonesian Army, Maruli Simanjuntak, kicked off the tree planting program in a land belonging to the state-owned agroforestry firm Perkebunan Nusantara (PTPN) in Gunung Hejo, Purwakarta, West Java on Tuesday. 

As part of this program, Pupuk Indonesia and the army will plant 56,220 tree seedlings of various types -- particularly fruits -- over a land that spans 200 hectares. 

"Indonesia needs to build its food security, but many of us do not realize that many of our agricultural lands are dormant," Rahmad said.

The Prabowo Subianto administration is gearing up for the upcoming free nutritious meal program. According to Rahmad, the agroforestry program can help supply the vitamin-rich fruits that will be served to the students. Rahmad said that this program could also become an economic boon to the locals that Pupuk Indonesia involves in this program. It will also benefit the environment in line with the government's net-zero emission targets.

"A person's oxygen consumption is the same as what seven mango trees produce. If Pupuk Indonesia has 20,000 employees, then we have to plant hundreds of thousands of trees. Perhaps what we plant now may not be enough, but I believe for every small thing we do, we can help Indonesia to become a strong nation," Rahmad said.

Pupuk Indonesia also handed over five tractors to help with land management. The company has also distributed staple goods for the locals who would be taking part in managing the land.

Maruli said that the first phase of the agroforestry program would start with 200 hectares of land. There are, however, plans to expand the target to 1,000 hectares.

"This is actually not a new partnership. We have already been working on it since three years ago. We usually pick the type of plants or trees that are well-suited in the region's soil. ... This program shows how we can produce oxygen and drive the economy at the same time," Maruli said.

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