Indonesia’s $8 billion papua plantation project raises environmental and social concerns

Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto is advancing an ambitious $8 billion agricultural mega-project that would transform vast areas of South Papua into industrial plantations for rice and sugarcane production. The controversial “food estate” initiative aims to reduce Indonesia’s dependence on food imports and foreign oil by boosting domestic biofuel production, but critics worry about its environmental and social impact on one of the world’s most biodiverse regions.

The project’s scale is massive. In October, state-owned PT Hutama Karya secured a $286 million contract—the largest public tender of the year—to construct an 80-kilometer highway connecting South Papua’s coast to its interior. The infrastructure will support planned sugar factories, a bioethanol plant set to begin operations in 2027, and a 120-megawatt power station. State enterprise PT Agrinas Pangan Nusantara will manage the food estate, with funding from government holding company Danantara.

This isn’t Indonesia’s first attempt at large-scale agricultural development in remote regions. Similar “food estate” projects have been pursued since the 1990s under former president Suharto, targeting sparsely populated areas in Kalimantan and Papua. However, these centrally-planned initiatives have historically struggled when ambitious goals meet challenging realities, including unsuitable soil conditions and complex local ecosystems.

The current project represents the government’s strategy to achieve food security and energy independence, but environmental advocates question whether industrial agriculture in Papua’s sensitive ecosystems is sustainable. As Indonesia moves forward with this multibillion-dollar gamble, the balance between national development goals and environmental protection remains a critical concern.