Jakarta, September 4, 2026 — Indonesia is developing the Wanam food production area in South Papua as a strategic hub to strengthen regional food self-sufficiency and improve access to affordable food across Papua, Coordinating Minister for Food Zulkifli Hasan said.
Hasan said the development of Wanam, located in Ilwayab District, Merauke Regency, is expected to help Papua meet its rice needs through production within the region.
“If this can run well, then later all of Papua will have enough rice from Wanam, from Merauke,” Hasan said during the launch of the book Indonesian Food: From a Healthy Plate to Superior Human Resources at IdeaFest 2026 in Jakarta on Friday.
The government has designated Wanam as one of its food production centers as part of efforts to increase Papua’s capacity to meet its own food requirements.
Hasan said Indonesia’s national food security strategy must also take into account the ability of individual regions to produce their own food. The country’s vast geography means that food availability, distribution and prices can vary significantly from one area to another.
He cited egg prices as an example. While eggs in Jakarta can cost around Rp25,000 to Rp28,000 ($1.50-$1.70) per kilogram, prices in Maluku and Papua can reach approximately Rp60,000 per kilogram.
The disparity, Hasan said, highlights the need to strengthen food production at the regional level so that food self-sufficiency can be achieved not only nationally but also across individual regions.
“So therefore, based on regions, they must be self-sufficient,” he said.
Presidential Special Assistant for Communications and Policy Analysis Dirgayuza Setiawan, who spoke at the same forum, said national-level food self-sufficiency does not necessarily mean that every region is capable of meeting its own food needs.
“Today, nationally, we are already self-sufficient in eight food commodities. But if we look at each region, there are still many areas that are not yet food self-sufficient,” Setiawan said.
President Prabowo Subianto said in August that Indonesia had achieved self-sufficiency in eight food commodities: rice, corn, large chilies, bird’s eye chilies, household sugar, chicken meat, chicken eggs and shallots.
Setiawan pointed to East Nusa Tenggara as an example, saying the province still relies on supplies of chicken from East Java because local production has yet to meet demand.
He also stressed the importance of regional production in maintaining food supplies when interregional distribution is disrupted, including during natural disasters.
“Because when a disaster occurs, (for example) a bridge collapses, we cannot simply send logistics from our food production centers to disaster-affected areas,” he said.
The development of Wanam has also been accompanied by efforts to expand agricultural production and build supporting infrastructure.
During a visit to Wanam in July, Hasan said around 1,200 hectares of a planned 10,000-hectare rice-growing area had been planted with rice, with harvesting expected in September or October 2026.
Infrastructure development has also progressed in the area. Hasan previously said a 58-kilometer road had been constructed, while preparations were underway for the development of an airport and port facilities to support the food production zone.
The acceleration of national food, energy and water self-sufficiency zones is regulated under Presidential Instruction No. 14 of 2025 and reinforced by Presidential Instruction No. 16 of 2025 on strengthening the accelerated development of national food, energy and water self-sufficiency areas.
Hasan said that if Wanam eventually produces more food than Papua requires, the surplus could also help supply food to Maluku and East Nusa Tenggara.
The government views the development of region-based food production as a way to strengthen Indonesia’s national food resilience while reducing disparities in food availability and access among regions.
