Petrokimia Gresik's Taruna Makmur Program Expands, Delivering Substantial Benefits At Pupuk Indonesia Group's Makmur Jamboree

Petrokimia Gresik's Taruna Makmur program, an initiative of Petrokimia Gresik, a leading agro-industrial solutions company and member of the Pupuk Indonesia holding, has expanded its reach in agricultural assistance across Indonesia. This expansion was marked by the departure of 76 student participants of the Taruna Makmur program in the Makmur Jamboree organized by Pupuk Indonesia in the Pupuk Kujang Cikampek Area on Saturday (11/11).

The President Director of Pupuk Indonesia, Rahmad Pribadi, stated that Taruna Makmur consists of students who will provide field assistance in the Makmur Program. They come from the Agricultural Development Polytechnics (Polbangtan) from five regions across Indonesia, namely Polbangtan Bogor, Yogyakarta, Malang, Medan, and Gowa. Currently, 76 Taruna Makmur students have been inaugurated, and the number will continue to increase to reach 500 Taruna spread across various regions in Indonesia.

"As per the instructions of the Minister of SOEs, Erick Thohir, to continuously promote the Makmur program, through the Makmur Jamboree activity, we aim to further strengthen collaboration among stakeholders, partners, and participating farmers in the Makmur Program. In the future, these Taruna Makmur participants will provide cultivation assistance and agronomic services to farmers who join the Makmur Program," Rahmad added.

Following their participation in the Makmur Jamboree, the President Director of Petrokimia Gresik, Dwi Satriyo Annurogo, expressed gratitude that the Taruna Makmur Program, initially initiated by Petrokimia Gresik, has received positive reception and provided significant benefits to the agricultural sector and education.

Currently, the program's reach has been expanded. All fertilizer producers under the Pupuk Indonesia holding are also implementing the Taruna Makmur program. Out of the numerous Taruna Makmur sent by Pupuk Indonesia, 40 Taruna Makmur are under the guidance of Petrokimia Gresik, with ten from Pupuk Kalimantan Timur, eight from Pupuk Sriwidjaja Palembang, 15 from Pupuk Kujang Cikampek, and three from Pupuk Iskandar Muda.

"This Taruna Makmur program is Petrokimia Gresik's commitment to advancing agriculture in Indonesia. This program is designed to optimize the implementation of the Makmur Program of the Ministry of SOEs and the Agrosolution Project of the Pupuk Indonesia Group. Through the Taruna Makmur Program, Petrokimia Gresik strives to develop excellent human resources in agriculture to support the increase in crop productivity in various regions," said Dwi Satriyo.

The departure of Taruna Makmur by Pupuk Indonesia marks the third batch trained and dispatched by Petrokimia Gresik. The first batch, consisting of 30 Taruna Makmur, was sent by Petrokimia Gresik in 2022, followed by 38 Taruna Makmur dispatched in March 2023, and the third batch was sent along with Taruna Makmur from all fertilizer producers under Pupuk Indonesia.

Before their departure, they received training in cooperation with the Agricultural Human Resources Development and Extension Agency (BPPSDMP) of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Indonesia.

"This program is one of our ways to facilitate farmers in finding solutions to various issues they have been facing, while also inviting the younger generation to witness firsthand the immense potential of the agricultural sector if managed optimally. We hope this will attract young people to venture into the agricultural sector," Dwi Satriyo concluded.

Meanwhile, the Makmur Jamboree was held to strengthen collaboration among stakeholders of the Makmur Program. This event brought together all stakeholders involved, ranging from banking institutions, technical assistants, agricultural production facility providers, to off-takers and agricultural insurance providers.

This activity served as a platform for knowledge and experience exchange, connecting various parties involved in the Makmur ecosystem, conducting agricultural product and technology exhibitions, and expanding farmer partner networks. Petrokimia Gresik presented 230 participants consisting of farmers and students at this event.

Realization of Makmur
As of October 2023, Petrokimia Gresik has realized the Makmur program on 126,044 hectares (Ha) of land. This area is equivalent to 41 percent of the total realization of the Makmur program across all Pupuk Indonesia subsidiaries, which is 306,775 Ha.

Petrokimia Gresik involved 30,212 farmers in this realization. This number accounts for about 33 percent of the farmers involved in the Makmur program of the Pupuk Indonesia Group.

Petrokimia Gresik's realization of the Makmur program is predominantly in East Java with a land area of 83,961 Ha. This is followed by Central Java and Yogyakarta Special Region (16,155 Ha), West Java (9,789 Ha), Bali Nusa (9,181 Ha), Kalimantan (4,220 Ha), and Sumatra (2,738 Ha). The commodities cultivated under Petrokimia Gresik's Makmur program include sugarcane (51,103 Ha), rice (46,517 Ha), horticulture (12,435 Ha), corn (8,373 Ha), oil palm (4,219 Ha), and shallots (3,392 Ha).

Through the Makmur program organized by all Pupuk Indonesia subsidiaries, including Petrokimia Gresik, productivity has increased in productivity for several agricultural crops, such as rice by 14 percent. Previously, it was only 5.7 tons/Ha, now increased to 6.5 tons/Ha.

"Petrokimia Gresik, through the Makmur Program, contributes to the success of the national food security program by increasing agricultural productivity and promoting farmer welfare," concluded Dwi Satriyo.