JAKARTA, July 3 (Reuters) – Indonesia’s weather agency warned farmers to adjust their farming activities to mitigate risks stemming from the extreme dry weather expected this year, according to a government statement on Friday.
Here are the details:
• As of June, around 38% of Indonesia’s seasonal zones have entered the dry season, while 47% of the zones have experienced lower than normal rain volume, Ardhasena Sopaheluwakan, an official with the country’s weather agency (BMKG) said in the statement.
• The dry season, which will be impacted this year by the El Nino weather pattern, is expected to peak some time between July to September, he said.
• Sopaheluwakan urged farmers to make adjustments to their farming activities due to the intensifying El Nino effects.
• “For the agricultural sector, several crucial steps that need to be implemented immediately include adjusting planting schedules, optimising the use of dry-resistant and early-maturing plant varieties, and diversifying food crops,” he said.
(Reporting by Fransiska Nangoy, Gayatri Suroyo; Editing by David Stanway)
