Is It Wrong to Hope for the Birth of a National Palm Oil Agency?

The issue of the establishment of the National Palm Oil Agency has been widely discussed in recent times. This agency, which will become the "central point" for handling palm oil affairs, is expected to be established early in President Prabowo's administration. However, is it possible given that many parties may still want to interfere? The Indonesian Palm Oil Association (GAPKI) has verbally expressed its hopes for improved governance of the palm oil industry under President Prabowo's administration. Through its Chairman, Eddy Martono, it was conveyed that it is time to create concise and simple regulations that have a positive impact on national palm oil productivity and production. The improvements he referred to are holistic, from upstream to downstream. The optimization of the oil palm industry is indeed very strategic, considering its significant contribution to Indonesia's economy. According to projections by the Ministry of Industry (Kemenperin), the economic value of oil palm from upstream to downstream this year will reach a fantastic figure of IDR 775 trillion, an increase of IDR 25 trillion compared to last year. Therefore, Eddy advised, "There should be no overlapping policies between ministries," he stated as quoted on the GAPKI website, October 15, 2024. According to GAPKI's records, the management of Indonesia's palm oil industry is currently under 37 ministries and agencies. Thus, one can imagine how complex and complicated its governance is. Therefore, GAPKI hopes for concrete simplification in the form of regulations by establishing a new agency called the National Palm Oil Agency. This agency will be the decision-making center for palm oil matters, including production, consumption, planting, and licensing. To prevent too many parties from interfering, this agency is expected to be directly under President Prabowo Subianto. As is known, the challenges faced by the palm oil industry today are very complex. These range from land issues, legal certainty, to development and downstream issues. Although Indonesia has the largest land area in the world, in terms of productivity and its derivatives, it still lags behind neighboring Malaysia. In fact, in that country, an independent body handling all palm oil affairs was established 24 years ago, called the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB). Reportedly, the discourse on the establishment of the National Palm Oil Agency is nearing reality as it has entered the academic study phase at the University of Indonesia. It may be completed in the near future. The greater challenge, of course, is whether the agencies that usually participate in handling this "lucrative" industry are willing to voluntarily relinquish their authority for the greater good. In this regard, we place our hopes on President Prabowo.