Bulog sets aside tons of rice for disaster victims

JAKARTA.  The State Logistics Agency (Bulog) has set aside 365,000 tons of rice to meet staple food needs in the country's disaster affected regions, according to Bulog chief Sutarto Alimoeso.

Alimoeso said in Jakarta on Sunday that Bulog would provide 100 tons of rice for each of the regency/municipal city governments to meet the needs of residents affected by floods, landslides, volcanic eruptions and droughts.

For provincial governments affected by natural disasters, Bulog will provide 200 tons of rice to meet local needs in the respective regions.

"There’s no need to wait for the issuance of a disaster alert status. If a local government finds a shortage of rice in its region, it can directly ask for rice from Bulog," said Alimoeso as quoted by Antara news agency.

He said the rice allocation would be taken from the government's rice reserves, under the management of the Office of the Coordinating People's Welfare Minister.

The Bulog chief guaranteed that rice stocks were enough to meet needs for eight months.