Mass gardening to meet food needs independently

Mass gardening to meet food needs independently

More than two million Papuans and West Papuans are at risk of starvation if logistics shipments from outside the area, especially rice, are disrupted during the corona virus pandemic (Covid-19).

To prevent this, a number of residents carried out mass gardening activities to meet food needs independently.

The provincial governments of Papua and West Papua each say that until now food stocks are still safe. However, residents are advised to use the yard for gardening for food security during the pandemic.

"I ask districts and cities for socialization, take advantage of the plots, especially those in villages," said the Head of the Agriculture and Food Service of Papua Province, Semuel Siriwa.

For the past few weeks, residents of the Wouma District, Jayawijaya, have been busy preparing gardens to plant food.

They plan to grow Papua's unique food crops, namely petatas (yams), taro (bete), cassava, and vegetables.

"Previously, many were playing lottery, gambling, in the market. Now after the pandemic must gardening to prevent food insecurity and hunger," said Raimondus Mote, 38, a resident of Wouma district who joined gardening.

The mass gardening activity had previously been directed by the district head. The mass gardening movement was also carried out in Timika, Papua.

Before the Covid-19 pandemic, residents' days were usually occupied by their business of renting out equipment for parties, such as chairs and tents.

However, in the past three months, after the government established a social restriction regulation, its business automatically did not operate.

Without the usual busy schedule, residents busied themselves in their yard for gardening, a tradition which he called his parents taught. For him gardening helped him save in the midst of difficult times without income.

Agus Sumule, a lecturer in the Faculty of Agriculture at the University of Papua in Manokwari, said that 51% of residents in Papua and 75% in West Papua depended on food that came from outside Papua, especially rice.

If there is a food logistics disruption due to a pandemic, according to Agus Sumule's calculations, around 2.4 million people in the two provinces are "threatened with hunger".

So, said Agus, planting is one way to anticipate hunger and food difficulties. "I say, don't delay, you must plant immediately," he said.