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Agriculture
Indonesia, with its archipelago of volcanic soil and plentiful rainfall, offers a natural abundance that sustains the nation and plays a crucial role in its economic prosperity. One of the country’s leading sectors is agriculture, supporting the livelihoods of millions and making a significant contribution to Indonesia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). From rice paddies to coffee plantations, this diverse range of crops reflects the country’s unique geography and climate, making it a powerhouse in the global agricultural market.
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Agriculture
Indonesia, with its archipelago of volcanic soil and plentiful rainfall, offers a natural abundance that sustains the nation and plays a crucial role in its economic prosperity. One of the country’s leading sectors is agriculture, supporting the livelihoods of millions and making a significant contribution to Indonesia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). From rice paddies to coffee plantations, this diverse range of crops reflects the country’s unique geography and climate, making it a powerhouse in the global agricultural market.
In 2022, Indonesia’s agricultural sector generated approximately Rp2.4 quadrillion in GDP. This sector alone accounts for 12.4 percent of the country’s GDP, underlining its importance to the national economy. The following year, the country experienced a steady growth rate of 1.3 percent in this sector.
Agriculture serves as a key sector for the national economy in various Indonesian provinces, including Aceh, North Sumatra, West Sumatra, Riau, Jambi, Bengkulu, and South Sumatra. Additionally, the provinces of Lampung, Bangka Belitung, West Java, Central Java, East Java, and West Kalimantan, among others, also consider agriculture as a key sector.
This sector offers a rich variety of commodities, including paddy, corn, soybean, sweet potato, and cassava – all staple commodities that play a vital role in sustaining Indonesia’s food supply. Additionally, crops such as cocoa, coconut, coffee, and palm oil are essential for export income and providing job opportunities. In terms of employment, the agriculture sector employs nearly 28 percent of the country’s workforce.
The country’s agricultural sector has also attracted significant foreign investment in 2023, with roughly US$2 billion in direct contributions. With this sector helping sustain Indonesia’s food supply, the country’s paddy production statistics that same year indicate that roughly 10.2 million hectares of land were harvested, yielding an estimated 56.63 million tons of dried unhusked rice (GKG). Once processed for consumption, this translates to approximately 30.9 million tons of rice available for the population.
In a move to strengthen its agricultural foothold within Southeast Asia, Indonesia seeks to expand cooperation with Vietnam in both agriculture and aquaculture. Indonesia and Vietnam are forging a partnership to modernize their agriculture and aquaculture industries. This collaboration will leverage digitalization for improved efficiency and invest in research and development to enhance the quality and global competitiveness of their agricultural and fishery products.
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West Sulawesi Province has 145,000 hectares (ha) of land with good potential for cocoa cultivation, with the province's cocoa production level reaching 76,000 tons per year. Polewali Mandar Regency accounted for almost half of the province's total cocoa production at 35,000 tons per year.
West Sulawesi cocoa has the potential to become Indonesia's main supplier of exported cocoa beans, as 12,800 tons of cocoa per year have been exported from the province to various countries, such as China, Japan, Germany, the Netherlands, Russia, and America. West Sulawesi also has considerable human resources who are already skilled in cocoa production, as the province's people has been cultivating the commodity for some time.
In addition, cocoa has a positive impact on the agricultural sector of West Sulawesi. The province's agriculture sector also contributed 46.11 percent to West Sulawesi's overall gross domestic product (GDP), and its economic growth in 2024 - which reached 4.78 percent.
However, there are challenges that must be anticipated regarding the development of cocoa production in West Sulawesi, including the fact that cocoa is susceptible to pests and diseases such as heliopeltis attacks and fruit rot disease.
To support the cocoa cultivation program, the West Sulawesi Provincial Government has allocated a budget of around Rp15 billion in the West Sulawesi Province regional budget for the cocoa seed procurement program, the cocoa grafting program, and to overcome the problem of pests and diseases afflicting cocoa plants.
The initial stage of West Sulawesi's cocoa cultivation for 2025 is expected to benefit around 10,000 residents in Polewali Mandar Regency who are cultivating cocoa. The program is expected to improve the economic conditions and welfare of the local farming community and overcome poverty.
Farmers in Polewali Mandar Regency enthusiastically welcomed the West Sulawesi Provincial Government's program. Basri, one of said farmers admitted that he had chosen to plant cocoa to improve his welfare amid welcoming market conditions, with cocoa price continuing to rise, and the provision of cultivation assistance by the regional government.
West Sulawesi Plantation Service Plantation Product Processing and Marketing (PPHP) Head Agustina Palimbong stated that the 2025-2029 National Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMN) assigned West Sulawesi as a development area and center for coca manufacturing nationally.
Meanwhile, part of West Sulawesi's population in poverty and extreme poverty reached 10.71 percent and 1.7 percent of the province's 1.5 million population, with poor people in general accounting for 11.32 percent of the province's rural population. The majority of the rural poor rely on farming for their livelihood.
Additionally 60 percent of West Sulawesi's population are farmers. Therefore, the cocoa cultivation program is expected to benefit agricultural enterprises and improve the welfare of farmers.
"Cocoa will be a leading commodity in West Sulawesi for the next 10 years because it has clear economic prospects and market opportunities. In addition, the [commodity's] price [trend] promises to improve people's welfare and advance the regional economy," emphasized West Sulawesi Governor Suhardi Duka.
